Authorities are looking into whether chemical poisoning killed a family of four in Turkey.
Servet Böcek, 38, his wife Çiğdem, 27, and their two children Kadir, 6, and Masal, 3, died “on suspicion of food poisoning” while on vacation in Istanbul, according to the city’s Regional Health Chief, Dr. Abdullah Emre Guner, who published this on X on November 13.
However, CBS News and Metro reported that the family, who were staying in Istanbul’s Fatih area, may have been exposed to pesticides at their hotel, citing Turkish media.
The Hürriyet Daily News also said that two additional tourists became ill at the Harbour Suites Old City, where the family of four had stayed.
Meanwhile, according to a recent Deutsche Welle article published on Wednesday, Nov. 19, phosphine-producing insecticides are being researched.
According to The New York Times, the family may have been exposed to high levels of aluminum phosphide, a pesticide.
PEOPLE called the Turkish National Police for comment.
According to Deutsche Welle, samples from the mother’s and two children’s bodies were forensically analyzed, quoting local media Cumhuriyet.
According to CNN, bedbug killing goods were sprayed on the ground level and spread to the family’s room via the ventilation system.
“Primarily, it is believed that they died as a result of chemical poisoning caused by the circumstances in the hotel where they were staying,” the preliminary study stated, according to Deutsche Welle.
Officials are still conducting clinical, microbiological, toxicological, and chemical exams and analysis of the bodies.
According to Deutsche Welle, food poisoning is now seen as an improbable cause of mortality.
Eleven people have been arrested, including the owner of the Harbour Suites Old City hotel, two hotel employees, a pesticide worker, a mussels vendor, and a pita bread seller, according to The New York Times, citing news agency Anadolu.
According to The New York Times, which cites local news agency Demiroren, four of the seven are in jail, while the others are still being kept in detention as prosecutors decide what charges to pursue. Official charges have not yet been released.
Böcek reportedly died on Monday, after his wife and two children were found dead on November 14.
On November 9, the family drove from Hamburg, Germany, to Istanbul for a vacation.
PEOPLE has contacted the Harbour Suites Old City for comment.
