Michael Gover still remembers the shock he felt when he received an early morning phone call from a friend in Melbourne in September 2023.
It was around 8am in Turkey, where Michael now lives, and other family members were waking up to the same distressing phone call.
Michael was told that his cousin, Serdar Caliskan, had died during a weekend camping trip with friends at Mount Disappointment, 60 kilometres north of Melbourne.
He’d been stabbed by his wife of 25 years, Ilknur, in the late hours of September 30. Serdar, 50, died at the scene despite the efforts of paramedics.
“We were shattered. All we knew was that Serdar had been camping, he’d been stabbed and driven to hospital, but died on the way there,” Michael, 50, tells New Idea.
The following morning, Ilknur, 47, was charged with murdering her husband. She told police she couldn’t remember the events leading to Serdar’s death.
Ilknur later pleaded not guilty and argued she was asleep when she stabbed Serdar. Her lawyers told the court she had parasomnia – a sleep disorder that can include sleepwalking and sleep terrors.
Two experts found later found she may have acted involuntarily due to a sleep disorder.
In February this year, the Office of Public Prosecutions (OPP) in Victoria decided to drop the murder charge – a decision that outraged Serdar’s family.
In a statement to New Idea, the OPP said: “After a thorough assessment and review of the evidence provided by several experts, it was determined that the elements of murder could not be made out beyond reasonable doubt, and there was no reasonable prospect of conviction.”
Ilknur is now a free woman.
In April, Serdar’s family launched a petition that calls for a coronial inquest into Serdar’s death.
They’ve also called for a law to be introduced which would ban sleep disorders from being used as a defence in violent crimes. They’d like this to be called ‘Serdar’s Law’.
“We told Serdar’s father he’d died in a car accident because the truth would kill him,” Michael, who refers to Serdar like a brother, says.
“His mother knows what really happened, but we’ve also shielded her from some details. Serdar’s parents are in their 80s, and they’re currently in hospital, and I’m sure that’s because of the stress of what’s happened.”
Serdar’s family have also criticised the parasomnia defence used by Ilknur’s lawyers.
“During their visits to Turkey over the years, we never saw any signs of Ilknur having a sleeping disorder or sleepwalking. In all the years we knew him, Serdar never referred to it,” Michael says.
“What has happened to Serdar, and the actions of the justice system in Australia have destroyed us. We have been kept out of the investigation and treated like strangers. Are we really supposed to accept that Serdar was killed by a sleepwalker?”
It comes as Ilknur’s lawyers say her case appears to be the “the first case of parasomnia being relied upon as a defence to a homicide charge in Australia.”
“The Prosecution were not able to challenge the defence that was raised on behalf of our client, after expert reports and opinions, together with submissions were put to them,” they said in an online post.
“This experience makes the difference as we have the knowledge, expertise and confidence to explore every possible defence for the benefit of our clients.”
But for Serdar’s family back in Turkey, they’re determined not to let his death be in vain.
Michael adds: “Serdar was a lovely man who has not received the justice that he deserves, and we cannot, and will not, let him be forgotten.”
Read more about the petition here.
