Hablemitoğlu assassination: Nuri Gökhan Bozkır released... “Finding the real perpetrators is a matter of time”

Nuri Gökhan Bozkır, the only defendant in custody in the case, once again accused former prosecutor Zafer Ergün, who both prepared the indictment and served as the trial prosecutor for 3 years, stating, “I sent all information and documents regarding his FETÖ ties to the HSK (Council of Judges and Prosecutors). I hope we get a result before he flees to Germany.” The court decided to release Bozkır from this case, who had been released 3 years ago but was re-arrested for failing to comply with judicial control measures. However, Bozkır will remain in prison as he has been sentenced to 22 years in the 'onion truck' case in Şanlıurfa.

At today's hearing of the case held at the Ankara 28th High Criminal Court, Nuri Gökhan Bozkır and Enver Altaylı, who is convicted in another case, connected via SEGBİS from Sincan Prison, while the non-custodial defendants Levent Göktaş, Tarkan Mumcuoğlu, Fikret Emek, and Aydın Köstem were present in the courtroom, with the exception of Mehmet Narin, who is exempt from hearings.

At the beginning of the hearing, the Presiding Judge stated that they could not find the “no grounds for prosecution” decision issued by former prosecutor Zafer Ergün regarding the investigation into suspects thought to have followed Necip Hablemitoğlu during his conference in Eskişehir and his shopping at Migros just before he was murdered, which the Ankara 9th Criminal Judgeship of Peace had overturned on December 12. Noting that the document had not been sent to them despite all correspondence, the judge asked the lawyers, “Do you have a copy?”

İlknur Kodaz, the lawyer for the Hablemitoğlu family, extended her mobile phone to the Presiding Judge, saying, “I don't have a copy, but I have a photo of it. If you would like to look.” The judge recorded the date and number of the decision into the minutes by looking at the document on the phone. Meanwhile, Levent Göktaş's lawyer, Ali Soykan, who had found the document, asked, “Shall I provide it?” The judge replied, “No, I want it officially.”

Following these dialogues, lawyer Kodaz, when asked for her statement, requested that the result of the investigation launched to identify the individuals in the footage be awaited, as it would affect the verdict to be given regarding the defendants.

The prosecutor also requested that the investigation in question be awaited, while submitting an opinion that Nuri Gökhan Bozkır should remain in custody on the grounds that he was “caught while fleeing,” and that the judicial control measures for the other defendants, consisting of bans on leaving the city and the country, should continue. Upon this statement by the prosecutor, Nuri Gökhan Bozkır reacted by saying, “I was not caught while fleeing.” The Presiding Judge intervened, saying, “Wait a minute, Nuri,” and asked for his opinion regarding the final opinion submitted by the former prosecutor Zafer Ergün. Thereupon, the prosecutor stated that he would not evaluate the opinion at this stage due to missing elements in the file.

“Former Prosecutor is a FETÖ member” Allegation

When asked for their requests, defendants Levent Göktaş, Fikret Emek, Tarkan Mumcuoğlu, and Aydın Köstem requested the lifting of judicial control measures, while Nuri Gökhan Bozkır once again accused former prosecutor Zafer Ergün, saying, “I sent all information and documents regarding his FETÖ ties to the HSK. I hope we get a result before he flees to Germany.”

Recalling that he is accused of tailing and conducting reconnaissance on Hablemitoğlu, Bozkır said:

“The real reconnaissance was done by the former prosecutor. The opinion and indictment he prepared mention a honey-colored vehicle. The license plate of the vehicle is stated as TKS 08, but the owner of the vehicle cannot be reached. Despite this, embassy employees say they saw this vehicle on December 17 and 18. The person in the vehicle is described as dark-skinned, tall, thin, and having short black hair. This person matches exactly with the person numbered 2 who is stated to have followed Hablemitoğlu at Migros. I am 1.65 meters tall. I identified this with poor computer resources; the prosecutor's office could not. The real perpetrators changed the license plates. It is obvious how professional they are. The former prosecutor did not see this; he wanted to cover it up. I hope he chokes on his own... I know you will say ‘continue detention,’ but I am making my struggle. Fine, you gave a sentence; it has been 4.5 years, my time served is over, have some mercy. I also want the real perpetrators to be found.”

“With the İrfan Fidan Factor”

Hacer Ural, one of Bozkır's lawyers, stated that Bozkır did not flee and that he did not comply with judicial control because he was wronged in the onion truck case, and then explained the following:

“Nuri Gökhan Bozkır's path first crossed with FETÖ members in the Sauna gang case; he saw their true faces then. FETÖ members at the Anti-Terror Branch (TEM) wanted him to give the names of commanders who were working against FETÖ in the Turkish Armed Forces (TSK). However, he chose to go to prison rather than give them up. The fact that the TSK handed over Bozkır that day eventually reached the Chief of General Staff. Everything can be said about Nuri Gökhan Bozkır, but nothing can be said about his love for his country. Even before July 15, he provided information to the Istanbul TEM about FETÖ members. He ensured the arrest of the general who stopped the MİT trucks. There are also allegations that the prosecutor who conducted the onion truck investigation has ties to the terrorist organization. FETÖ was powerful in the Istanbul TEM. After providing this information, he was included in the onion truck case. Seeing the direction things were going, he went to Ukraine. He has correspondence with Zihni Çakır one day after July 15; he reported the names of FETÖ members in the TSK. However, when he saw the unexplained relationship between Zihni Çakır and the prosecutor conducting this case, and when Zihni Çakır reported that the prosecutor was a FETÖ member, he fled, saying, ‘I am being pulled into another pit.’ When he was sentenced to 22 years in the onion truck case, he violated judicial control because he knew what would happen to him. We have said a lot about the injustices he suffered. Now you will tell us to ‘go to the Constitutional Court (AYM)’ again. There is no point in applying to the AYM while the İrfan Fidan factor exists. He was brought from Ukraine illegally and was tortured. His wife is Ukrainian. One night, while returning from the airport, 50 TEM police officers surrounded them. There is no search warrant. They asked his wife, ‘When did you get married? Why did you name your child Levent? Who named him; you or your husband?’ What do these have to do with the case? It is another dimension of torture. Şemdin Sakık and Abdullah Öcalan were brought to this country. Did you see anyone brought in a coffin-like cell? Who has been subjected to this much torture?”

Bozkır's other lawyer, Emrah Yücel, emphasized that journalist Zihni Çakır, who was the basis of the indictment, was arrested last month and then released, and requested that it be asked whether there is a “FETÖ” investigation into Çakır and whether any information or documents related to the Hablemitoğlu case were found during searches of his home. Lawyer Yücel pointed out that Bozkır is accused of reconnaissance and tailing Hablemitoğlu, while the newly launched investigation reveals that these activities were carried out by others.

Tarkan Mumcuoğlu's lawyer, Ener Taner, stated that it was absurd to request the continuation of judicial control measures for the defendants while a new investigation aimed at finding the real perpetrators had been launched, saying, “For years, they could not go to funerals in other cities or to their children's homes.”

Mumcuoğlu's other lawyer, Eren Turan, also said:

“As of the stage the trial has reached, the investigation whose result is awaited is not an ordinary investigation. It is an investigation aimed at identifying those who were personally present at the scene, participated, or were the perpetrators themselves. It is a pity that all these issues were known even before the indictment was prepared. It was in the hands of the prosecutor's office, but they did not take it into account; they ignored it. In the end, the prosecutor abandoned many of his claims that were the basis of the indictment. Despite this, why should the judicial control of the defendants still continue, for the collection of evidence? The prosecutor's plot was based on Tarkan Mumcuoğlu, and he investigated for 7 years. While everything is clear, there is no legal explanation for the continuation of judicial control, which is a maximum of 3 years.”

Defendant Fikret Emek's lawyer, Lütfü Top, stated that Emek is a veteran and has shrapnel in his body, and requested that the ban on leaving the city be lifted because it disrupts his treatment.

Real Perpetrators to be Found with 2026 Technology

Ali Soykan, the lawyer for the case's defendant number 1, Levent Göktaş, also spoke as follows:

“The case, which has been going on for over 3 years, has become a ‘start-stop’ situation. All evidence has been collected. I don't know how it looks from the bench, but when I look at the defendants from here, I see shattered lives and people whose reputations have been damaged. The ongoing new investigation is aimed at finding new suspects and requests evidence from your Court. We don't know what the former prosecutor did with this digital evidence. It needs to be investigated whether the existing evidence has been tampered with. For example, the Eskişehir footage does not form a whole. Even if there is no tampering, it is clear that there are cuts. Former prosecutor Zafer Ergün is someone who secretly obtained those images from you through another investigation file and examined them by breaking their seals. The list of evidence sent by the judicial repository and the list of evidence prepared by Zafer Ergün are not compatible. HTS and base station research for 1 month before the murder was requested, and this was done. But we don't know the result. Zihni Çakır, the most important basis of the indictment, was arrested. The prosecutor resigned, but the judicial control of the defendants continues. Finding the perpetrators is a matter of time. The work to improve the images with 2017 technology will be done with 2026 technology.”

When the Presiding Judge asked, “You said he was arrested, what's that about?” regarding the statements about Zihni Çakır, Lawyer Soykan replied, “It was said to be for insulting the Minister of Justice; we don't know the content of the file. However, searches were carried out at his home. If there is any material related to our case in these searches, let it be brought into the file.”

After the statements were completed and a break of approximately 2.5 hours was given to the hearing, the Presiding Judge announced that it was decided to release Nuri Gökhan Bozkır from this file, to continue the judicial control measures of the other defendants, and to reject the requests regarding Zihni Çakır, and that the hearing was adjourned to May 18 and 20.

Müyesser YILDIZ

January 30, 2026