First indictment for key Turkey coup plot figure Adil Öksüz prepared

SAKARYA

The first indictment regarding a key figure in Turkey’s failed July 2016 coup attempt, Adil Öksüz, was prepared in the Marmara province of Sakarya on Jan. 19, with the prosecutor seeking one aggravated life sentence and a jail sentence of between 190 years and 319 years.

Öksüz, who was briefly detained after the foiled coup but then disappeared after being released, is accused of a number of charges, including being among the leaders of the coup attempt, widely believed to have been masterminded by the “Fethullahist Terrorist Organization (FETÖ)” of U.S.-based Islamic preacher Fethullah Gülen. 

The indictment for Öksüz, the Gülen movement’s “imam” or responsible figure in the Air Force, was prepared by five prosecutors and was accepted by the Second Heavy Penal Court. 

The indictment stated that Öksüz was among the “managers” of FETÖ and acted on the orders of Gülen. He is also accused of attempting to remove the constitution by force and attempting to overthrow the system.

 “Forming an armed terrorist organization,” “attempting murder” and “harming public property” are among the other charges. 

Meanwhile, Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım has issued a warning to Japan about FETÖ, during a meeting with visiting Japanese Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Keiichi Ishii in Ankara on Jan. 18. 
Prime ministerial sources say Yıldırım hailed the two countries’ “already fruitful ties” and said Turkey sees Japan as an “important trade partner” in the East Asia and Pacific region, adding that he expects more Japanese firms to get involved in projects in Turkey, sources added. 

He also said Ankara expects Japan to take “necessary measures” against the Gülenist network. 

Ishii, meanwhile, said Japan is in “full solidarity” with Turkey and expressed the Japanese people’s happiness about the failure of last year’s coup attempt.      

He added that Japan will continue to look into Gülenist structuring in the country.      

Elsewhere, police on Jan. 19 apprehended 95 personnel of the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK) who were among suspects issued with arrest warrants as a part of the investigation into to the thwarted coup. 

The suspects were detained on suspicion of using ByLock, an encrypted messaging application said to have been used by members of the movement loyal to Gülen.

Their apprehension comes one day after the Istanbul 9th criminal court of peace issued an arrest warrant for a total of 243 military personnel in 54 provinces across Turkey over their alleged links to the failed coup attempt.

Among the detained military personnel were eight colonels, three lieutenant colonels, 11 majors and 11 captains.

In an earlier decision, the public prosecutor’s office had issued arrest warrants for 575 soldiers in the land, air and naval forces, including 295 officers and 280 non-commissioned officers.

Police had later apprehended 351 of the suspects in an Istanbul-based operation conducted in 58 provinces, with 315 of them later arrested.

The other 36 suspects, meanwhile, were freed under the effective repentance law.