Moment worried friend calls 999 to report man, 46, missing before his mutilated body was found in landfill – as police suspect he was murdered by love rival

A stunning 999 call has revealed the moment a father was reported missing, before his naked and dismembered body was found in a landfill seven weeks later.

Cumali Turhan was last seen in a bar in Chelmsford, Essex, on November 19, 2024, and alarm was raised when 46-year-old Turhan did not turn up for work.

Channel 4’s new documentary ‘To Catch a Murderer: Buried Truths’, airing tomorrow at 9pm, reveals for the first time a friend’s anxious call to the police.

The 999 operator is heard saying: ‘Essex Police, what is your emergency?’ – and then a man replies in broken English: ‘We have a friend but we haven’t heard from him since last night until now. ‘We’ve been asking everyone, but no one has seen it.’

The officers feared that Mr. Turhan, who was known to the Turkish community in the town, had been murdered. But it took a further 45 days before they found his body on January 11 last year, some 20 miles away, at the Enovert landfill in Stanway.

The search involved 1,650 police shifts at ten locations and is thought to be the first time a body has been found in an active police search of a landfill in the UK.

Mr Turhan’s suspected killer, Ceyhan Dinler, 38, was never found and left the UK via Stansted Airport on 19 November, the day Mr Turhan was reported missing.

Homeless Ciprian Ilie, 44, was jailed for seven years last October after being found guilty of assisting an offender and preventing Mr Turham from being lawfully buried.

During the hearing, the court heard Mr Turhan’s claim that he was ‘in a relationship with Mr Dinler’s girlfriend’ and that there was an ‘ongoing and growing problem’ between the men.

Police found Mr Turhan’s body at Enovert landfill in Stanway on January 11 last year.

Mr Turhan is thought to have been at the Barista pub in Duke Street, after The Globe pub in Rainsford Road. CCTV did not show him leaving Barista.

During Ilie’s three-week trial at Chelmsford Crown Court, jurors were told the tip of Mr Turhan’s tongue and genitals were cut off during an attack at the Barista.

Prosecutors believe Tottenham Hotspur supporter Mr Turhan was fatally stabbed in the neck after being injured.

The tip of Mr. Turhan’s tongue and penis were later found in a trash can; The victim’s body was dumped in a different commercial bin behind the bar.

The second bin was then collected by garbage services and unknowingly transported to the landfill.

After Mr. Turhan did not come to work, a missing person report was made to the police on the evening of November 19.

Ilie was arrested at a homeless shelter in Chelmsford after confessing what had happened to a worker who called the police.

He later told detectives he received a call to go to Barista in the early hours of Nov. 19. When Ilie arrived, he said he found blood on the floor and a body in the corner.

Ceyhan Dinler (pictured) is still wanted in connection with the disappearance of Cumali Turhan

Dinler left Stansted Airport on 19 November, the day Mr Turhan was reported missing.

He claimed he was threatened with a knife before being forced to help pick up the body and place it in a bin at the back of the venue.

Ilie also told officers that both he and his girlfriend had been threatened, so he did what he was ordered to do.

Mr Turhan’s former partner and the mother of his young daughter told the court he was ‘important’ and she was worried about the ‘lifelong impact this will have on my daughter’s life’.

He also said he was troubled by the ‘psychological pain’ of having her ‘tossed aside and brushed aside as if it didn’t matter at all’.

After sentencing Ilie, Judge Morgan said Mr Turhan’s body was found thanks to the police’s ‘tenacity’ in searching the landfill, scanning CCTV footage and building trust with the Turkish community in Chelmsford.

Bar worker Dinler is believed to have fled to Türkiye but coroner Michelle Brown told Mr Turhan’s inquest last September that his current whereabouts were unknown.

Ciprian Ilie (pictured) was found guilty of aiding an offender and obstructing a lawful burial

The search at Enovert landfill in Stanway was carried out by 1,650 shifts of officers across ten locations

Cumali Turhan was said to be a well-known figure within the Turkish community in Chelmsford

Essex Police still want to speak to Dinler about the death and have said they are working with the Crown Prosecution Service to achieve this.

Senior investigating officer Detective Chief Inspector Louise Metcalfe said: ‘Throughout this extremely challenging investigation, every officer and staff involved was determined to find Cumali and achieve justice for him and his loved ones.

‘At the center of this case are a father who died in truly horrific circumstances and a young daughter who had to grow up without him.

‘We have never lost sight of this and we are determined that our prime suspect in this case is brought to trial.’

Police Sergeant Simon Gray, who was involved in the search, added: ‘I hope this documentary shows people the dedication and commitment of everyone involved in this search.

‘We faced an incredibly challenging environment and poor weather conditions that often hampered this delicate and complex work. ‘We never lost sight of the need to find Cumali and bring him back to his family.’

To Catch a Murderer: Buried Truths will air on January 6 at 21.00 on Channel 4