Wild chases in which criminals try to escape on luxury yachts and are stopped at the last second by police are usually seen only in films. In Turkey, however, these scenes took place in reality, shortly after two earthquakes with magnitudes of 7.7 and 7.6 shook the southeast of the country, as well as the north of Syria.

On the run were builders like Mesut Başkır, against whom an arrest warrant was issued for negligent homicide. Buildings constructed under his supervision in Kahramanmaraş province collapsed during the earthquake, burying their residents.

The official number of those killed by the earthquake stood above forty-four thousand as of February 26. Within the first two weeks following the disaster, 182 building contractors had been arrested, according to the newspaper Diken. The Turkish construction sector is known for its close involvement in the highest political circles, even beyond the Justice and Development Party (AKP) regime — but so far, no politicians are willing to admit responsibility.