DEVA Party founder sentenced to 16 years for leaking confidential documents
ANKARA
An Ankara court has sentenced retired military officer and academic Metin Gürcan, one of the founding members of the Democracy and Progress Party (DEVA), to 16 years and 8 months in prison on charges of obtaining and disclosing classified information.
Gürcan stood trial on accusations of espionage, specifically for “obtaining information that should remain confidential in terms of the security and political interests of the state,” according to the indictment.
The final hearing of the case took place on June 2 and was held behind closed doors on grounds of “public security,” media reported. Gürcan, who had been released pending trial, and his legal counsel were present during the session.
The court found Gürcan guilty and handed down a sentence of 16 years and 8 months in prison.
The indictment included photographs documenting several of Gürcan’s meetings, which prosecutors argued were part of his intelligence activities.
He was accused of sharing sensitive information with foreign diplomatic representatives in exchange for payment.
The intelligence he disclosed included details about Türkiye’s military operations in Syria and Iraq, the locations and movements of Turkish military units and observation posts, the indictment said.
The country’s military presence and activities in Libya were also among them. He was also accused of sharing information on high-level foreign policy meetings and their contents, as well as the development of unmanned aerial vehicles.
The judicial process began in 2021, when Gürcan was first detained in Istanbul. After spending some time in pre-trial arrest, he was released under judicial control in 2022.
In 2023, he was initially sentenced to five years in prison. However, the superior court overturned the ruling and ordered a retrial, leading to the June 2 verdict.
