Ayhan Bora Kaplan threatened co-defendant Fethi Koyuncu in the holding cell: 'I will kill your mother'

12punto writer and journalist Müyesser Yıldız reports live on the developments from the hearing held at the Sincan Prison campus by the Ankara 32nd High Criminal Court...

The presiding judge announced that a report was filed stating that Bora Kaplan threatened co-defendant Fethi Koyuncu in the holding cell on Monday, saying, "I will kill your mother."

Fethi Koyuncu, whom Bora Kaplan allegedly threatened, had submitted a petition yesterday to benefit from the effective remorse law.

The hearing began with the submission of requests from Barış Kurt, a detained defendant and former AKP Ankara Provincial Deputy Chair and Çankaya Municipal Council member. Reiterating his previous defense, Kurt stated that the allegation that he had plaintiff Erkan Doğan kidnapped and his teeth pulled out was untrue, claiming that Doğan was lying, and said, "I have never lied to you."

I HAVE NEVER USED DRUGS IN MY LIFE

Describing himself with the words, "My only bad habit was the hookah. It has been 3-4 years since I quit that. I have never used drugs or alcohol in my life," Barış Kurt made the following statements regarding plaintiff Erkan Doğan:

"Erkan Doğan is a big liar. He misled you too, Mr. President. He is someone who uses drugs."

Barış Kurt emphasized that the statements given to the prosecutor in 2023 by the police officers who signed the reports on the date Erkan Doğan claimed to have been kidnapped were different from the past reports, but that they told the truth when they were heard as witnesses in court, and that this contradiction was caused by the police officers who conducted the investigation, speaking as follows:

"These police officers, chiefs, and commissioners have no conscience. I have cursed them many times. They ruined my life. If those police officers hadn't been arrested, they would have buried us alive. Are we not going to ask how those police officers signed these statements in the presence of the prosecutor? I swear you must release me. I swear I am being held for nothing."

Barış Kurt, who cried at the end of his defense, sat down after saying, "I have something to say, my mother is here," without being able to complete his sentence.

WHERE IS THE 61 LICENSE PLATE FROM?

In the afternoon session of the hearing, Barış Kurt's lawyer, Assoc. Prof. Dr. Sinan Kocaoğlu, presented his defense. Stating that this is a political case, Atty. Kocaoğlu began his remarks as follows:

"During the draft stage of the indictment, a prosecutor friend of mine pointed out that the investigation started with 100 people but the case was filed against 61 people, and then asked which province 61 was the code for. When I said I didn't know, he said 'Trabzon' and then asked whose hometown Trabzon was. Süleyman Soylu's... I don't care about conspiracy theories; but when the indictment came before me, I saw that its jargon and terminology were not criminal law terminology."

After reading what former KOM Branch Deputy Director Şevket Demircan said about the presiding judge during his meetings with fugitive secret witness Serdar Sertçelik, Atty. Assoc. Prof. Dr. Kocaoğlu made the following call to the Judge:

"We will not recuse you. We invite you to withdraw. You don't have to withdraw immediately; release the defendants, then withdraw. Just as you cannot meet with us, you cannot meet with the police. We do not see legitimacy in your arrest decisions. My client, who is as strong as a bull, is begging you like a pauper in Medina. You are the judge of justice, not the state. If necessary, you will also judge the state. You cannot meet or message with the police. Are you above the law?"

When Atty. Kocaoğlu raised his voice during these statements, the presiding judge warned him, "Do not raise your voice. There is no need to shout. You are only doing this to yourself."

IF YOU ARE GOING TO TAKE SÜLEYMAN, TAKE HIM

Atty. Kocaoğlu continued his defense:

"If he has committed a crime, if you are going to take Süleyman, take him; why are you dealing with my client? I think the release of the police officers is also political. I am not in favor of detention, but they should release them too and keep them under house arrest. Are they detained because they are not civil servants and do not engage in 'homeland, nation, Sakarya' rhetoric?"

Responding to the presiding judge's warning at the end of his defense by saying, "I am not afraid of you either, Mr. President. Do not threaten me," Atty. Kocaoğlu repeated his request for the panel to withdraw after requesting that the police officers' case be merged with this case and that a release decision be made.

To the defendant's relatives applauding Atty. Kocaoğlu, the Judge reacted by saying, "What is happening, what? Good God."