He was attacked: Prison sentence for journalist Sinan Aygül

Bitlis’s Tatvan district, on June 17, 2023, Bitlis Journalists Association President Aygül, who was attacked by police bodyguard Engin Kaplan and boxer bodyguard Yücel Baysalı—relatives of Tatvan Mayor Mehmet Emin Geylani—was sued after the attack for allegedly insulting one of the attackers, Yücel Baysalı. The indictment prepared by the Tatvan Chief Public Prosecutor's Office on charges of 'insult' was accepted by the Tatvan 1st Criminal Court of First Instance, and the court decided that the case should be conducted via the 'simple trial procedure' as it fell under Article 251 of the Criminal Procedure Code (CMK).

COURT ISSUES SENTENCE FOR "INSULT" CRIME

According to the report by Orhan Bozkurt from Anka, journalist Aygül was sentenced to 2 months and 5 days in prison in the case heard via the 'simple trial procedure' at the Tatvan 1st Criminal Court of First Instance. The court, which issued the sentence for the crime of 'insult', decided that the sentence should be served according to the recidivism provisions stipulated in Article 58 of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK).

Because recidivism provisions will be applied to his new sentences due to the sentences he received for his previous reporting, Aygül will spend the entirety of his sentence in a closed penal institution. It is noteworthy that the decision emphasizes that the sentence was not converted into alternative sanctions such as a fine, as the 'criminal personality of the defendant' was taken into consideration.

"THEY WILL TERRORIZE WITH THE STATE'S WEAPON AT THEIR WAIST, AND I WILL GO TO PRISON BECAUSE I DID NOT DIE"

Evaluating the outcome of the case, Aygül said:

"I had said before that I would almost be sentenced and arrested because I was attacked. I said that a case could only be forced this much against someone and in favor of others, and it was. I said that every development overshadows the scandal of the previous one. What we said is coming true one by one. The attackers are free; perhaps they will receive a very small sentence, be reinstated to their duties, and continue to terrorize with sticks in their hands and the state's weapon at their waists. As for me, I was attacked because I defended the interests of the public and the people, and I will go to prison because I did not die, because I returned from the brink of death.

The decision was made via the simple trial procedure; my lawyer has appealed, and there will be a hearing. If there is a hearing, the reduction granted will be revoked, and I will receive a 2-month and 27-day prison sentence. The forensic medical report is a report that directly affects the amount of the sentence to be given. The report given by the forensic medicine institution to which the court referred the case is contradictory. There is a permanent scar visible in two points on the face. The report states that there is a 1.5 cm diameter depression on the cheekbone and a separate scar on the forehead. However, in the evaluation, it says there is no permanent scar on the face. The court will make a decision based on this report, which is contradictory even within itself. We will appeal this as well and request to be sent to a Forensic Medicine center with more advanced units."

"EVERYONE KNOWS THIS WAS NOT AN ISOLATED INCIDENT"

Stating that the incident was not an isolated one but that no steps have been taken regarding the instigators, Aygül said that "despite the footage and the statements amounting to a confession, the perpetrators will almost be acquitted." Aygül continued his speech as follows:

"Everyone knows that this incident was not isolated. There are no answers to the questions of who the instigators are and from whom they received the instructions. At first, there was an investigation process that proceeded quickly, transparently, and effectively, and the perception was created in everyone that the judiciary and the administration would do what was necessary. However, while the reality is there in all its nakedness, the fact that the Ministry of Interior itself called the incident a 'fight', that the case was opened on charges of 'injury' rather than 'attempted murder', that they were released at the first hearing, that a restraining order was obtained against me, that I was given a prison sentence, and that the forensic medical report is contradictory in a way that could be considered favorable to them, all cast suspicion on the process. Under these conditions, we honestly do not expect a fair result."

CASE TO BE HEARD ON JANUARY 25

On the other hand, the second hearing of the case in which Tatvan Mayor Mehmet Emin Geylani's police bodyguard Engin Kaplan and boxer bodyguard Yücel Baysalı, who attacked journalist Aygül, are being tried without arrest for the crime of 'intentional injury with a weapon' will be held on Thursday, January 25, at 15:00, at the Tatvan 2nd Criminal Court of First Instance.