German broadcaster n-tv had reported that Ali Kur, 29, flew to Turkey shortly after the girl was reported missing and that he was now in Turkish police custody. German police announced on Thursday they would be working with Turkish authorities to locate him but they would not confirm his arrest. “We have no information that he has been apprehended,” a state prosecutor’s office spokesperson said.
Kardelen was reported missing in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia on January 12. Police said she was apparently sexually assaulted before being suffocated after her body was found on January 15.
Police in the German state of North Rhine-Westphaliahave since issued an international warrant for Ali Kur’s arrest after matching clues from the crime scene to his apartment next door to the girl’s home. Kur had been a resident of Germany since 2001 and left the country with his wife, police said.