North Texas man sentenced to life for stabbing mother, sister to death

A North Texas man who stabbed his mother and sister to death in 2021 was sentenced Thursday to life without the possibility of parole, the Collin County District Attorney’s Office said.

Burak Hezar, 23, of Allen, pleaded guilty days before he was scheduled to go to trial and was sentenced for the capital murders of his mother, Isil Borat, 50, and his sister Burcu Hezar, 17.

“Burak Hezar committed one of the most heinous crimes against the very people who loved him and cared for him – his mother and sister. We hope that this sentence brings a sense of safety and justice to Isil and Burcu’s surviving family members in this very painful time,” Collin County District Attorney Greg Willis said in a statement.

On April 24, 2021, the Allen Police Department responded to the family’s residence after Burak Hezar’s stepfather called police. When the stepfather arrived home early from a business trip, Burak Hezar would not let him go near his mother’s and sister’s rooms, according to the district attorney’s office.

Burak Hezar brandished a knife and tried to prevent his stepfather from leaving the house, but the stepfather escaped and called 911. Burak Hezar fled the scene and was later apprehended at Dallas-Fort Worth Airport according to the district attorney’s office.

Investigators learned that Burak Hezar went to his sister’s room as she slept and attempted to smother her with a pillow. Burcu Hezar woke up and fought off her brother until he pulled out a knife and stabbed her to death.

He then went to his mother’s room and stabbed her to death in her sleep.

The Allen Police Department notified the DFW Airport Department of Public Safety, preventing him from getting on a plane and committing another murder.

Burak Hezar was trying to flee on a plane to California to kill his father, he told detectives.

Judge John Roach watched over the case and approved the automatic sentence.