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Probe finds suspected criminals working at schools
After inspecting the criminal records of 12,898 school workers including cafeteria operators and contract employees, the İstanbul Police Department found that 233 of them are suspects in crimes ranging from murder and robbery to drug dealing and sex crimes. Robbery topped the list, with 65 people under investigation on robbery charges. Nineteen school employees are suspected of involvement in illegal trade, 17 in forging official documents, 12 in murder, 11 in fraud, 10 in terrorism, 13 in drug dealing and six in pedophilia. The probe into the workers’ criminal records started on Jan. 21, according to the Hürriyet daily.
Education Minister Nimet Çubukçu said that those 233 people will no longer work in schools, but also pointed out that none of them have been convicted of any crime. “None of those people have been convicted of any crime. But considering the crimes that they are accused of and thinking about the high level of protection that our children need, we have to be more careful,” she said yesterday, answering questions from journalists regarding the investigation.
She also pointed out that the inspection was done at the request of the Education Ministry.
“We are very careful about who works in our schools and cafeterias,” she said. “We see schools as places where children need even more protection than in their homes.” Asked if there will be anything done against the “old offenders” found in the investigation, Çubukçu said: “They are neither old offenders nor criminals. Their cases have not been solved yet.”
When asked if those 233 people will continue to work in the school system, Çubukçu answered, “No.”
School cafeterias are leased in accordance with the Education Ministry’s 2005 Parent Teacher Association guidelines, which ban people convicted of crimes against the state, serious crimes and forgery from operating cafeterias, even if they have been pardoned.
Muammer Yıldız, head of the İstanbul Provincial Education Directorate, said that from now on, they will require more extensive investigations into the backgrounds of people who apply to work in school cafeterias and on buses because a mere criminal report would not show most crimes in which a person is suspected of involvement in. He also said school employees will be subject to additional training.
He noted that of about 12,000 people working in schools in those capacities, 17 were currently wanted in criminal investigations. “There have been administrative and legal procedures started with those people. Among them are people who were involved in sexual abuse, robbery and drug dealing. We will fire those people this week,” he said, and called on families to remain calm because they will address the situation quickly.
The investigation, which shocked the nation and the education system, was conducted as part of a 2007 protocol called “A Secure Environment in School” signed between the interior and education ministries.
Meanwhile, Vahap Osmanoğlu, head of the İstanbul Canteen Operators, said that they were uncomfortable with the news because they feared they may be viewed as suspects or criminals. “I don’t believe that cafeteria workers are involved in such crimes. We are facing loaded claims. There are standards for cafeteria operators or workers, and we are inspected by the schools,” he said, adding that he wrote letters to all districts asking for criminal reports on all cafeteria operators. He also said that they will review the results and then decide what action to take on the matter.
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