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DINK'S MURDERER SENTENCED TO OVER 22 YEARS IN PRISON
Hurriyet
July 25, 2011
Turkey
The murderer of Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, Ogun Samast was
sentenced to over 22 years of jail in Istanbul's Juvenile Court. Yet,
Dink's friends say that now it is time to punish the real criminals
behind the murder.
Ogun Samast, who has been in jail for four and a half years, defended
himself by saying that he didn't know Dink and has been influenced
by newspapers and columnists.
A juvenile court in Istanbul handed down a jail term Monday of nearly
23 years to the self-confessed murderer of prominent ethnic Armenian
journalist Hrant Dink, who was gunned down in broad daylight in 2007.
The juvenile court initially condemned Ogun Samast to life, but
reduced the sentence to 21-and-a-half years on the grounds that he
was underage at the time of the murder before giving him an additional
16 months for possession of an unlicensed weapon.
Samast was facing 18 to 24 years in jail on charges of having killed
Dink, a Turkish journalist of Armenian origin and the editor-in-chief
of weekly Agos, who was murdered in front of his newspaper's office
in Istanbul on Jan. 19, 2007.
In the trial Monday, Samast defended himself by saying he had a poor
education and committed the murder under other people's influences.
"I was influenced by newspapers and some columnists. Otherwise how
would I know Hrant Dink, how would I know Agos?" Samast said.
A lawyer for the Dink family noted that Samast is also a suspect
in another case on accusations of being a member of a terrorist
organization.
"The court's decision is closer to the upper limit," Dink family lawyer
Fethiye Cetin told the private news channel NTV. "However this is only
one part of the case. In today's trial Samast was convicted of murder,
yet he is also being tried for being part of a terror organization."
Samast is also facing eight to 18 years in jail on the terror-related
charges. He is being tried along with Erhan Tuncel and Yasin Hayal,
who are also charged with "membership in and directing of a terrorist
organization" and "assisting a terrorist organization." Cetin said
they are expecting another 11 years of imprisonment for Samast from
that trial.
Under the Turkish Penal Code, Samast will likely not serve the 22
years and 10 months to which he was sentenced. Legal experts said he
might be able leave prison after between 10 and 12 years.
"His sentence will be decreased if he shows good behavior in prison,"
Ali Ersin Gur, former president of Contemporary Lawyers Association,
or CHD.
"In that case he will have to stay in jail for three-fourths of the
murder sentence, which is about 16.5 years. Considering that he has
already been in jail for the past 4.5 years, he might be out of prison
by 2023," Gur told the Hurriyet Daily News over the phone.
Retired prosecutor Mete Gökturk said, however, that Samast's sentence
might be decreased by one third since he was tried in juvenile court.
"He might be pardoned for almost seven years [of the sentence], which
would mean a total sentence of 15 years," Gökturk told Haberturk
television. In that case Samast would be out of jail by 2021.
Regardless of how much time he ends up serving, Samast's sentence
will not be enough to please those who believe there are other people
behind the murder, according to figures who have been following the
trial closely.
"We have been waiting for this decision for 4.5 years, and today it
has been finalized. Yet the real criminals haven't been tried yet,"
said Garo Paylan, a member of a group known as Hrant's Friends.
"There are several state officers behind this murder. We want each
of them to be sentenced," Cetin said.
Among the eight suspects who are being tried on charges of negligence
in preventing the Dink's murder are Trabzon Gendarmerie Commander Col.
Ali Oz and Gendarmerie Intelligence Unit Director Cpt. Metin Yıldız.
The next hearing of the case trial will be held Friday. Paylan said
now was the time to punish the other people involved.
"Today the court punished the child, yet we are waiting for his big
brothers," he said.
Hurriyet
July 25, 2011
Turkey
The murderer of Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, Ogun Samast was
sentenced to over 22 years of jail in Istanbul's Juvenile Court. Yet,
Dink's friends say that now it is time to punish the real criminals
behind the murder.
Ogun Samast, who has been in jail for four and a half years, defended
himself by saying that he didn't know Dink and has been influenced
by newspapers and columnists.
A juvenile court in Istanbul handed down a jail term Monday of nearly
23 years to the self-confessed murderer of prominent ethnic Armenian
journalist Hrant Dink, who was gunned down in broad daylight in 2007.
The juvenile court initially condemned Ogun Samast to life, but
reduced the sentence to 21-and-a-half years on the grounds that he
was underage at the time of the murder before giving him an additional
16 months for possession of an unlicensed weapon.
Samast was facing 18 to 24 years in jail on charges of having killed
Dink, a Turkish journalist of Armenian origin and the editor-in-chief
of weekly Agos, who was murdered in front of his newspaper's office
in Istanbul on Jan. 19, 2007.
In the trial Monday, Samast defended himself by saying he had a poor
education and committed the murder under other people's influences.
"I was influenced by newspapers and some columnists. Otherwise how
would I know Hrant Dink, how would I know Agos?" Samast said.
A lawyer for the Dink family noted that Samast is also a suspect
in another case on accusations of being a member of a terrorist
organization.
"The court's decision is closer to the upper limit," Dink family lawyer
Fethiye Cetin told the private news channel NTV. "However this is only
one part of the case. In today's trial Samast was convicted of murder,
yet he is also being tried for being part of a terror organization."
Samast is also facing eight to 18 years in jail on the terror-related
charges. He is being tried along with Erhan Tuncel and Yasin Hayal,
who are also charged with "membership in and directing of a terrorist
organization" and "assisting a terrorist organization." Cetin said
they are expecting another 11 years of imprisonment for Samast from
that trial.
Under the Turkish Penal Code, Samast will likely not serve the 22
years and 10 months to which he was sentenced. Legal experts said he
might be able leave prison after between 10 and 12 years.
"His sentence will be decreased if he shows good behavior in prison,"
Ali Ersin Gur, former president of Contemporary Lawyers Association,
or CHD.
"In that case he will have to stay in jail for three-fourths of the
murder sentence, which is about 16.5 years. Considering that he has
already been in jail for the past 4.5 years, he might be out of prison
by 2023," Gur told the Hurriyet Daily News over the phone.
Retired prosecutor Mete Gökturk said, however, that Samast's sentence
might be decreased by one third since he was tried in juvenile court.
"He might be pardoned for almost seven years [of the sentence], which
would mean a total sentence of 15 years," Gökturk told Haberturk
television. In that case Samast would be out of jail by 2021.
Regardless of how much time he ends up serving, Samast's sentence
will not be enough to please those who believe there are other people
behind the murder, according to figures who have been following the
trial closely.
"We have been waiting for this decision for 4.5 years, and today it
has been finalized. Yet the real criminals haven't been tried yet,"
said Garo Paylan, a member of a group known as Hrant's Friends.
"There are several state officers behind this murder. We want each
of them to be sentenced," Cetin said.
Among the eight suspects who are being tried on charges of negligence
in preventing the Dink's murder are Trabzon Gendarmerie Commander Col.
Ali Oz and Gendarmerie Intelligence Unit Director Cpt. Metin Yıldız.
The next hearing of the case trial will be held Friday. Paylan said
now was the time to punish the other people involved.
"Today the court punished the child, yet we are waiting for his big
brothers," he said.