EX-POLICE CHIEF CHARGED WITH NEGLIGENCE IN DINK MURDER RELEASED PENDING TRIAL
Today's Zaman, Turkey
Dec 25 2014
Journalist Dink was assassinated outside the office of his Agos
newspaper on Jan. 19, 2007.
December 25, 2014, Thursday/ 13:43:43/ TODAY'S ZAMAN / ISTANBUL
Former Trabzon Police intelligence branch chief Faruk Sarý, who was
referred to court for arrest on Wednesday on charges of negligence
in the murder of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, has been
released by the court.
The court imposed a travel ban on Sarý.
Dink was assassinated in broad daylight outside the offices of his
Agos newspaper by an ultranationalist teenager on Jan. 19, 2007.
Sarý came to the Ýstanbul Courthouse on Wednesday morning to testify
to prosecutor Gokalp Kokcu as part of an ongoing investigation into
public officials on charges of negligence in the murder of Dink,
After his two-hour testimony, Kokcu said Sarý was directly responsible
for preventing the murder of Dink, who was killed despite intelligence
existing about his possible assassination, and demanded the arrest
of Sarý under Article 83 of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK). Article
83 deals with negligence causing death due to the failure to take
appropriate action to prevent the death. According to media reports,
Sarý denied any link with the murder of Dink during his testimony.
Kokcu referred Sarý to Ýstanbul 2nd Criminal Judge of Peace Hulusi
Pur for arrest. Sarý testified to the judge for one hour. After
his testimony, the judge decided to release Sarý pending trial on
Wednesday.
The Dink murder case has been fraught with controversy -- as well
as some solid evidence -- suggesting that many state officials, from
police chiefs to bureaucrats, were either negligent in their duties
and ignored signs of an assassination plot to kill the journalist or,
according to the Dink family lawyers' claims, had knowledge about the
plot and did nothing -- because they agreed with it, were part of it
or did not care. Other incidents and evidence that came up during
the first trial also indicate that there were attempts to cover up
the investigation.
As part of the investigation, two former heads of the intelligence
unit of the National Police Department -- Sabri Uzun and Ramazan
Akyurek -- and a former police chief, Ali Fuat Yýlmazer, testified as
suspects. Former Ýstanbul Deputy Governor Ergun Gungor also testified
as a suspect early in December. Other high-profile figures have been
called to testify as suspects, including former Ýstanbul Police Chief
Celalettin Cerrah, former Ýstanbul Police Department intelligence unit
chief Ahmet Ýlhan Guler and former Trabzon Police Chief Reþat Altay.
Dink was shot and killed by an ultranationalist teenager seven years
ago. The hitman, Ogun Samast, and 18 others stood trial. During the
trial, the lawyers for the Dink family and the co-plaintiffs in the
case presented evidence indicating that Samast did not act alone.
Another suspect, Yasin Hayal, was given life in prison for inciting
Samast to murder. However, Erhan Tuncel, who was the man accused of
initiating the effort to have Dink murdered, was acquitted of all
charges related to the killing of Dink, but then rearrested during
the retrial of the murder case in early 2014. He was released again
in March as part of a bill reducing the maximum period of arrest to
five years.
http://www.todayszaman.com/national_ex-police-chief-referred-to-court-for-arrest-in-dink-murder-trial-released_367964.html
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Today's Zaman, Turkey
Dec 25 2014
Journalist Dink was assassinated outside the office of his Agos
newspaper on Jan. 19, 2007.
December 25, 2014, Thursday/ 13:43:43/ TODAY'S ZAMAN / ISTANBUL
Former Trabzon Police intelligence branch chief Faruk Sarý, who was
referred to court for arrest on Wednesday on charges of negligence
in the murder of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, has been
released by the court.
The court imposed a travel ban on Sarý.
Dink was assassinated in broad daylight outside the offices of his
Agos newspaper by an ultranationalist teenager on Jan. 19, 2007.
Sarý came to the Ýstanbul Courthouse on Wednesday morning to testify
to prosecutor Gokalp Kokcu as part of an ongoing investigation into
public officials on charges of negligence in the murder of Dink,
After his two-hour testimony, Kokcu said Sarý was directly responsible
for preventing the murder of Dink, who was killed despite intelligence
existing about his possible assassination, and demanded the arrest
of Sarý under Article 83 of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK). Article
83 deals with negligence causing death due to the failure to take
appropriate action to prevent the death. According to media reports,
Sarý denied any link with the murder of Dink during his testimony.
Kokcu referred Sarý to Ýstanbul 2nd Criminal Judge of Peace Hulusi
Pur for arrest. Sarý testified to the judge for one hour. After
his testimony, the judge decided to release Sarý pending trial on
Wednesday.
The Dink murder case has been fraught with controversy -- as well
as some solid evidence -- suggesting that many state officials, from
police chiefs to bureaucrats, were either negligent in their duties
and ignored signs of an assassination plot to kill the journalist or,
according to the Dink family lawyers' claims, had knowledge about the
plot and did nothing -- because they agreed with it, were part of it
or did not care. Other incidents and evidence that came up during
the first trial also indicate that there were attempts to cover up
the investigation.
As part of the investigation, two former heads of the intelligence
unit of the National Police Department -- Sabri Uzun and Ramazan
Akyurek -- and a former police chief, Ali Fuat Yýlmazer, testified as
suspects. Former Ýstanbul Deputy Governor Ergun Gungor also testified
as a suspect early in December. Other high-profile figures have been
called to testify as suspects, including former Ýstanbul Police Chief
Celalettin Cerrah, former Ýstanbul Police Department intelligence unit
chief Ahmet Ýlhan Guler and former Trabzon Police Chief Reþat Altay.
Dink was shot and killed by an ultranationalist teenager seven years
ago. The hitman, Ogun Samast, and 18 others stood trial. During the
trial, the lawyers for the Dink family and the co-plaintiffs in the
case presented evidence indicating that Samast did not act alone.
Another suspect, Yasin Hayal, was given life in prison for inciting
Samast to murder. However, Erhan Tuncel, who was the man accused of
initiating the effort to have Dink murdered, was acquitted of all
charges related to the killing of Dink, but then rearrested during
the retrial of the murder case in early 2014. He was released again
in March as part of a bill reducing the maximum period of arrest to
five years.
http://www.todayszaman.com/national_ex-police-chief-referred-to-court-for-arrest-in-dink-murder-trial-released_367964.html
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress