A court in northern Turkey's Giresun on Friday handed down a life sentence to Iranian national Hamed Esmaeillou for killing one Alper Nebil in a car accident. Esmaeillou crashed into Nebil on Dec. 25, 2017, while trying to run away from police on a highway in the Black Sea city. He was later jailed for the accident and for the possession of 31 kilograms of heroin, found in his car.

In the last hearing in his trial, Esmaeillou was sentenced to life for deliberate manslaughter, a precedent in for a traffic accident, Nebil's family lawyer Engin Tekin said.

Tekin said usually deaths in traffic accidents are classified as death by negligence for the part of motorist but the judge issued a verdict with a heavier sentence.

"Drivers involved in fatal traffic accidents usually get away with lenient sentences but the court's ruling, in this case, would restore people's confidence in the justice system," said Tekin.