A BRITISH tourist accused of hurling her boyfriend 100ft to his death from their hotel balcony in Turkey has been acquitted of his murder.
Kayley Myers, 32, freed from prison after winning a 16-month fight to clear her name, and has now flown back to the UK — and insisted: “I didn’t kill him.”
Kayley Myers was accused of hurling her boyfriend 100ft to his death from their hotel balcony in Turkey has been acquitted of his murderNNP
Kayley was accused of throwing 5ft 5in Reece Pegram, 22, from the third-floor balcony during a drunken row on their first full day in the resort
Reece Pegram, 22, was found dead in Antalya, Turkey
She was arrested by Turkish police in March last year after her boyfriend, Reece Pegram, 22, was found dead in Antalya.
Kayley was accused of throwing 5ft 5in Reece from the third-floor balcony during a drunken row on their first full day in the resort.
The former sales rep faced a 25-year prison sentence for murder as she battled Turkey’s “guilty until proven innocent” court system.
Relieved Kayley, who described her ordeal as “a living nightmare”, is now holed up in a secret address as she faces a new fight for her innocence to be accepted in the UK.
In an exclusive interview she told The Sun: “When the judge said I’d been acquitted and could fly home I broke down in tears and mouthed, ‘Thank you’.
“This has been hanging over me for the last 16 months. I’ve been through hell and it’s not over yet.
“I just want people to know the truth. I’ve been described as a violent and vicious person and I’m neither of those things.
“All I’m guilty of is having an argument with my boyfriend on holiday.
“I didn’t kill him. I didn’t throw him off the balcony. I’m not a horrendous murderer. I just couldn’t do that to someone.
“No one knows what happened – only Reece. But the evidence pointed towards what it was — an horrific accident.
“I’d swap places with him in a heartbeat if I could. He had so much to live for.
“I miss him every day. He was my best friend.
“I can’t imagine the pain his family is going through and I don’t want to add to that — but I need people to know that I didn’t do it.”
Kayley, of Newcastle, protested her innocence throughout her court appearances.
She said it would have been physically impossible for someone weighing 10st to throw 11st Reece over the balcony.
An autopsy report also revealed traces of alcohol and cocaine in his blood and concluded he fell feet first — inconsistent with being pushed over the railings.
At a hearing last month, a judge concluded: “There is no definite and convincing evidence that is sufficient to punish her for the crime, free from any doubt.
“The accused is acquitted of the wrongful offence.”
The tragedy took place in Antalya, Turkey
Kayley is now trying to pick up the pieces of her broken life.
She revealed: “My life stood still for 16 months. I’ve lost everything — my job, my home, my friends and my family.
“There will always be people who think I did it, there’s nothing I can do to change that. I have to live with this for the rest of my life. I know it’s never going to go away.
“But I don’t want it to determine my future. I want my life back.
“At the moment all I have is a bag of clothes. I’ve simply gone from one prison to another. I can’t get a job because the moment you Google my name, the details of my arrest and Reece’s death appear.
“I’m scared people will recognise me in the street and I’m constantly looking over my shoulder. I just don’t want to live my life in fear.”
Kayley and dad-of-one Reece flew out for a week-long holiday at a five-star hotel.
It was supposed to mark a fresh start in their year-long relationship and Kayley planned to celebrate his birthday just days later.
But they spent their first full day downing vodka before Kayley returned alone to the hotel room to sleep. Reece was escorted back by hotel staff members at 8pm but the couple began to row about his alleged cheating.
Kayley says a glass was smashed during the argument and she cut her hand while picking up the pieces. Traces of blood were found in the hotel room. She went to the bathroom to clean up and then heard a loud thump.
The former hairdresser said: “I thought it was the door slamming behind him. I thought he’d gone out to find more drink.
“I sent text messages telling him that I was finished with him but, after a while, I got worried and asked him to let me know where he was.
“I went to reception and they wrapped my hand before taking me back up to the room.
“I never left our hotel room after that point. I just went to sleep.” But in the early hours, she was woken by police officers who ordered her to get dressed before taking her to the local nick.
After 12 hours a translator arrived and told her that Reece had been found dead beneath the balcony and she was suspected of killing him.
She said of being taken into custody: “They told me to get some clothes on and took me away.
“At that point I didn’t know that I was being arrested. I had no idea what had happened.
“I genuinely thought Reece had been arrested for being drunk and disorderly and I was being taken to the police station.
“Not for one minute did I think this would be the outcome.
“I messaged his friends saying ‘I think Reece has been arrested’.
“I was in the police station for 12 hours asking for a translator.
“I had seen his phone on the table and assumed that he was in another room.”
She continued: “I couldn’t believe it when she told me he was dead.
“I just thought, ‘This isn’t happening’. Everything stood still.
“I thought of the last words I said to him, that I hated him and didn’t want to be with him. I said I was finished with him.
“I wish my last words to him had been ones of love, not anger.
“In the very next sentence the translator said, ‘You have killed him’.”
In Turkey, defendants are guilty until proven innocent and Kayley was put in front of a judge before spending the next seven months behind bars.
She recalled: “They drove me to prison that night. I just kept thinking, ‘This is a nightmare.’
“I’ve never stepped foot in a prison in my life. I had nobody. I was told a lawyer would be back to see me in seven days. I heard nothing for six weeks.
“Every bit of documentation was in Turkish. I had no idea what was going on.”
She was granted a conditional release over “flaws in the prosecution case” in October last year but had to remain in the country.
Kayley added: “I had no help from anyone, was thousands of miles away from home in a foreign country and didn’t understand the language. I have had to battle with keeping myself alive.”
She was finally acquitted last month and allowed to fly home to rebuild her life.
The couple had flown to Antalya and checked in to the five-star Hotel Side Star Elegance on March 11, 2022.
The next night, Reece was found dead at the foot of the couple’s apartment block
At 3am, police burst into their hotel room and arrested Kayley. She was eventually moved to Alanya prison that evening
Kayley did not appear in court the for the first time until June 22, when her case was adjourned
On October 7 last year, she was temporarily released from prison ahead of a full post-mortem examination report but she had to remain in the country.
Kayley was cleared by a Turkish judge of throwing Reece to his death from a balcony at their hotel – circled
An autopsy report also revealed traces of alcohol and cocaine in Reece’s blood and concluded he fell feet first — inconsistent with being pushed over the railings
The trip was supposed to mark a fresh start in their year-long relationship and Kayley planned to celebrate his birthday just days later.NNP
In January this year, Kayley appeared in court again but the case was adjourned once more owing to a legal delay.
It was then adjourned again in March because of technical issues.
In June, a prosecutor called for a 25-year prison sentence.
But on July 17, a judge acquitted Kayley of murder and ordered her release, allowing her to fly home and try to rebuild her life.