Man accused of killing his girlfriend in late January stabbing
A man is charged with killing his girlfriend after he reported it to Milwaukee police almost three weeks after she died.
Serkan Akcilad, 22, is charged with first-degree reckless homicide of his girlfriend Silan Tut in late January on the 1300 block of North 10th Street. Prosecutors say authorities found evidence of a cover up in the two's shared apartment, but the man denied he harmed her in interviews.
Tut's murder was not reported to police until Feb. 27, the day Akcilad told officers, and her death was confirmed by the Milwaukee County Medical Examiner's Office that day.
The man is a Turkish national, like Tut, and when asked why he waited to report the death, he said he was unfamiliar with American laws, according to a criminal complaint outlining charges.
Ackilad was scheduled for his initial court appearance on Wednesday morning. His cash bond was set at $1 million, according to online court records.
According to the complaint:
After Ackilad reported Tut's death, authorities investigated the apartment. They used blood detection equipment to find traces of blood throughout the apartment, including under a rug and other marks which indicated the body had been moved. Investigators concluded that "an extensive amount of blood had been cleaned up" from under the rug.
In a search of the apartment, police found sneakers with blood on them; a box cutter in the dishwasher; and clothes with possible blood stains on them in the washing machine.
Authorities would later find cleaning supplies and receipts that showed their purchase was made on Jan. 24. Store footage was later reviewed that confirmed Akcilad purchased the cleaning supplies that day.
Officers interviewed two people at the apartment building, who both said they heard the two arguing.
The day Akcilad reported Tut's death to police, he told officers he previously attempted to kill himself with a nail gun and had a nail in his head, which was removed at a local hospital. Officers interviewed him regarding the circumstances of Tut's death, but he denied cleaning supplies were purchased to cover up her killing or that he did it.
He told authorities he found Tut dead in the apartment after he purchase the cleaning supplies and, upon finding her dead body, he passed out. Akcilad admitted he moved her body to the spot where she was found in the days before police searched the apartment,
Officers did not find any sharp knives in the apartment and Akcilad confirmed the two had them but denied knowing where they were.
Ackilad told officers the two were being evicted and he would not have reported the death had the apartment property company not been scheduled to look at the premises. He also admitted to impersonating Tut in text messages to her family, to suggest she was alive and well.
Tut's death is one of 17 reported homicides to Milwaukee police so far this year. That's a 23% dip from last year at this date and down 35% from two years ago at this date.
The Journal Sentinel previously investigated domestic violence homicides in Milwaukee County between 2016 to 2022 and found at least 178 deaths were related to it.
David Clarey is a public safety reporter at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. He can be reached at dclarey@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Man charged in killing his girlfriend in January Milwaukee stabbing
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