Ömer Dağ, a Norwegian Turkish man, committed suicide after killing his wife and father in the southern Turkish city of Osmaniye, his hometown, yesterday.

Dağ was entangled in a legal battle in a Norwegian court over the custody of his children, who were taken by social services after a domestic dispute. He had recently returned to Osmaniye.

The bodies of his 83-year-old father and his wife Mehtap Dağ were discovered in their house, while the body of 45-year-old Dağ was found in an empty plot near the house. Security forces believe he killed himself after gunning down his wife and father with a shotgun yesterday.

Locals said the suspect was depressed after Norwegian social services forced him to hand over his sons, ages 4 and 6, after allegations surfaced that he was beating his wife. Moreover, they said Dağ often quarreled with his father.

Ömer Dağ was sentenced to eight months in prison and a restraining order was issued after his wife complained of domestic abuse three years ago. The children were taken away on the grounds that the father had psychological problems and he also beat his children.

Speaking to Doğan News Agency one month ago, Dağ said his case was a culmination of a series of misunderstandings. "My wife returned to Turkey and when asked by Norwegian authorities why she was leaving, she told them she missed her mother and Turkey. They presumed she left for Turkey permanently. And when she told them she needed a rest, they believed I was still violent towards her due to a previous incident. Social services also persuaded my children to testify against me. I did not even slap them," he had claimed.