After an intense manhunt, Turkish cops have arrested a homeless man in connection with the beating death of Staten Island mother Sarai Sierra, local officials said yesterday.
Identified only as “Ziya T.,” the man was described as an Istanbul loner who sold scrap paper for a living.
Authorities said he had been on the run since being identified as a suspect and was cornered in the remote district of Reyhanli near the Syrian border on Saturday.
He has not been charged, but will be transported to Istanbul for interrogation.
Cops believe he had been attempting to hide among the refugee camps that have sprung up as a result of the violence in Syria.
Sierra, 33, had embarked on a solo trip to Turkey on Jan. 7 to pursue her interest in photography. She vanished two weeks later and was found beaten to death near Istanbul’s ancient city walls on Feb. 2.
Reached at his Staten Island home, her husband, Steven, expressed cautious relief at the arrest.
“I hope it’s the correct person,” he said. “If not, hopefully they’ll let him go. You hear a lot about people being falsely accused . . . We’ll see what happens. Time will tell.”