Russian Teen Gets 15-Year Sentence for Abandoning Newborn in Turkish Airport Restroom

A Turkish court has sentenced an 18-year-old Russian girl to 15 years in prison for leaving her newborn baby in an airport restroom, according to Russian state media reports on Monday.

Yekaterina Burnashkina and her 47-year-old mother, Yelena, were taken into custody at Antalya Airport on October 13, 2024, after airport cleaning personnel found the infant girl in a toilet bowl. Legal documents indicate that the baby’s leg was caught in the toilet’s drainage system, and she has since been placed in an orphanage.

Antalya’s Fourth High Criminal Court convicted Burnashkina of attempted murder of a family member, as reported by the state-operated RIA Novosti news agency.

In a separate ruling the previous week, Yelena Burnashkina was found not guilty of any charges and was permitted to return to Russia, RIA Novosti added.

Sergei Vetrik, Russia’s Consul General in Antalya, stated earlier this month that his diplomatic office is making efforts to facilitate Yekaterina Burnashkina’s return to Russia. The Russian consulate has not issued any comments on the recent verdict.

Burnashkina’s attorney, who maintained that her client did not have criminal intentions, informed RIA Novosti of plans to appeal the ruling. Nevertheless, she expressed skepticism about the possibility of Burnashkina being extradited to Russia.