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FIRST HEARING OF PRIME SUSPECT AT JUVENILE COURT
BIAnet.org
March 1 2011
Turkey
The prosecution of Ogun Samast, one of the prime suspects in the murder
case of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, started on 28 February
at a juvenile court in Istanbul. Samast's request for a closed session
was rejected. Nine of Dink's relatives were accepted as co-plaintiffs.
Elif GENCKAL [email protected] Istanbul - BÄ°A News Center01 March
2011, Tuesday The trial against defendant Ogun Samast, triggerman
suspect in the Hrant Dink murder case, started on Monday (28 February)
before the Sultanahmet (Istanbul) 2nd Juvenile High Criminal Court.
Turkish-Armenian journalist Dink was shot in front of his office in
Å~^iÅ~_li/Istanbul in bold daylight more than four years ago on 19
January 2007. Dink was the founder and then Editor-in-Chief of the
Armenian Agos newspaper.
Lawyer Fethiye Cetin, joint attorney of the Dink family, spoke
to the journalists in front of the courthouse. She said that the
Dink family members were not going to attend any hearing held at
the Sultanahmet Juvenile Court in order to express their protest
against the circumstances that Samast is being tried at a children
and juveniles court.
The Istanbul 14th High Criminal Court had decided in October 2010
that Samast should be prosecuted at a Children and Juvenile Court
because he was under-age at the time of the murder. This decision
came after a trial period of more than three years.
Nine members of Dink family co-plaintiffs The court accepted Rakel
Dink, widow of the slain journalist, his brothers Arat and Hosrof
Dink, furthermore Ferat, Ara, Aycan, Zabal, Maral and HaskanoÅ~_
Dink as co-plaintiffs. The application of the Agos newspaper and the
Birgun daily, a nation-wide newspaper Dink used to write for, for
co-plaintiff status were accepted as well. Savo and Mikail Yagbasan,
brothers of Rakel Dink, were dismissed as co-plaintiffs because they
had "not suffered direct harm", the court reasoned.
Samast a "child dragged into crime"?
The court rejected the request to hold a closed session without the
press. The journalists were allowed into the court room at around
noon time. The court president called Samast a "child having been
dragged to crime".
Six witnesses heard At the Monday hearing, the court took the
statements of eyewitnesses Akif Calıkoglu, Cemal Yıldırım, Ahmet
Emin Ozmete and Agos employees Dina Murat, Christine Dellaloglu and
Ä°brahim Caglayan. The court decided to keep Samast in detention. Most
of the witnesses said that the weapon Samast was holing was "grey"
or of "light colour". The court is going to hear ten other witnesses
in the coming hearing on 4 April.
Joint attorney Bahri Bayram Belen interrogated Samast on the weapon.
Belen indicated that the aim was not to prosecute Samast for a high
prison sentence but to reveal the concrete background of the murder.
Decision for Juvenile Court and its appeal On 25 October 2010, the
Istanbul 14th High Criminal Court decided for a "lack of jurisdiction"
in relation to defendant Samast according to certain amendments
regarding the Anti Terror Law (TMY). Thereupon, the court decided to
prosecute Samast before a Children and Juveniles Court.
The Dink family lawyers appealed the decision on the following day and
demanded to handle the case as a whole at the 14th High Criminal Court.
Joint attorney Arzu Becerik had announced that Samast could
be released in a short time because his case was transferred to a
juvenile court. Becerik had expressed her concern that Samast could
be released pending trial in January 2010.
Becerik criticized that the trial fell in abeyance when Samast's file
was transferred to the juvenile court and that the procedures gave
the impression that a decision would not be given any time soon. "If
the prosecution of Samast will be continued at a juvenile court, he
will be out of prison after five years", the lawyer stated referring
to certain applications of mitigation for juveniles.
Samast facing 20 years in jail Samast is facing up to 20 years in
prison on charges of "membership of an illegal organization" and
"unlicensed gun possession".
Samast stands accused of killing journalist Dink in front of the Agos
newspaper office in Istanbul. He was arrested on his way back to his
home town Trabzon at the Samsun coach station (Black Sea coast) one
day after the murder. He has been detained for four years. (EG/EO/VK)
From: A. Papazian
BIAnet.org
March 1 2011
Turkey
The prosecution of Ogun Samast, one of the prime suspects in the murder
case of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, started on 28 February
at a juvenile court in Istanbul. Samast's request for a closed session
was rejected. Nine of Dink's relatives were accepted as co-plaintiffs.
Elif GENCKAL [email protected] Istanbul - BÄ°A News Center01 March
2011, Tuesday The trial against defendant Ogun Samast, triggerman
suspect in the Hrant Dink murder case, started on Monday (28 February)
before the Sultanahmet (Istanbul) 2nd Juvenile High Criminal Court.
Turkish-Armenian journalist Dink was shot in front of his office in
Å~^iÅ~_li/Istanbul in bold daylight more than four years ago on 19
January 2007. Dink was the founder and then Editor-in-Chief of the
Armenian Agos newspaper.
Lawyer Fethiye Cetin, joint attorney of the Dink family, spoke
to the journalists in front of the courthouse. She said that the
Dink family members were not going to attend any hearing held at
the Sultanahmet Juvenile Court in order to express their protest
against the circumstances that Samast is being tried at a children
and juveniles court.
The Istanbul 14th High Criminal Court had decided in October 2010
that Samast should be prosecuted at a Children and Juvenile Court
because he was under-age at the time of the murder. This decision
came after a trial period of more than three years.
Nine members of Dink family co-plaintiffs The court accepted Rakel
Dink, widow of the slain journalist, his brothers Arat and Hosrof
Dink, furthermore Ferat, Ara, Aycan, Zabal, Maral and HaskanoÅ~_
Dink as co-plaintiffs. The application of the Agos newspaper and the
Birgun daily, a nation-wide newspaper Dink used to write for, for
co-plaintiff status were accepted as well. Savo and Mikail Yagbasan,
brothers of Rakel Dink, were dismissed as co-plaintiffs because they
had "not suffered direct harm", the court reasoned.
Samast a "child dragged into crime"?
The court rejected the request to hold a closed session without the
press. The journalists were allowed into the court room at around
noon time. The court president called Samast a "child having been
dragged to crime".
Six witnesses heard At the Monday hearing, the court took the
statements of eyewitnesses Akif Calıkoglu, Cemal Yıldırım, Ahmet
Emin Ozmete and Agos employees Dina Murat, Christine Dellaloglu and
Ä°brahim Caglayan. The court decided to keep Samast in detention. Most
of the witnesses said that the weapon Samast was holing was "grey"
or of "light colour". The court is going to hear ten other witnesses
in the coming hearing on 4 April.
Joint attorney Bahri Bayram Belen interrogated Samast on the weapon.
Belen indicated that the aim was not to prosecute Samast for a high
prison sentence but to reveal the concrete background of the murder.
Decision for Juvenile Court and its appeal On 25 October 2010, the
Istanbul 14th High Criminal Court decided for a "lack of jurisdiction"
in relation to defendant Samast according to certain amendments
regarding the Anti Terror Law (TMY). Thereupon, the court decided to
prosecute Samast before a Children and Juveniles Court.
The Dink family lawyers appealed the decision on the following day and
demanded to handle the case as a whole at the 14th High Criminal Court.
Joint attorney Arzu Becerik had announced that Samast could
be released in a short time because his case was transferred to a
juvenile court. Becerik had expressed her concern that Samast could
be released pending trial in January 2010.
Becerik criticized that the trial fell in abeyance when Samast's file
was transferred to the juvenile court and that the procedures gave
the impression that a decision would not be given any time soon. "If
the prosecution of Samast will be continued at a juvenile court, he
will be out of prison after five years", the lawyer stated referring
to certain applications of mitigation for juveniles.
Samast facing 20 years in jail Samast is facing up to 20 years in
prison on charges of "membership of an illegal organization" and
"unlicensed gun possession".
Samast stands accused of killing journalist Dink in front of the Agos
newspaper office in Istanbul. He was arrested on his way back to his
home town Trabzon at the Samsun coach station (Black Sea coast) one
day after the murder. He has been detained for four years. (EG/EO/VK)
From: A. Papazian