Police officer accused of leaking information to Cevheri Güven defends himself: 'I am affiliated with the Meşveret group of the Nurcu movement'

Müyesser YILDIZ / 12punto

Serkan Dinçer, the only detained defendant in the case, argued that he had no connection to 'FETÖ', while stating, 'I have been affiliated with the Meşveret group of the Nurcu movement since my childhood.' Dinçer, who also revealed that his professional reference was Ankara Police Chief Engin Dinç, stated that he 'Are you in the same ideological group as Engin Dinç?' did not want to answer the question.

Serkan Dinçer, the sole detained defendant in the trial held at the Ankara 17th High Criminal Court, 'membership in an armed terrorist organization', Former Ankara Deputy Police Chief Murat Çelik, who conducted the Bora Kaplan operation, along with former Organized Crime Branch (KOM) Director Kerem Gökay Öner and Deputy Branch Director Şevket Demircan, areaccused of 'committing crimes on behalf of an organization without being a member, violating confidentiality, and misconduct in office'. The trial is ongoing.

At the start of today's first hearing, attended by the defendants and their lawyers, Oğuzhan Bilgin, the lawyer for Bora Kaplan—who was sentenced to 68 years in prison on charges of being the leader of a criminal organization—requested to join the case, stating that Kaplan's name appeared on every page of the indictment: 'We have evidence to present in order to reveal the material truth. Cevheri Güven would share what Bora Kaplan said in the hearing shortly after. The hearing was being monitored by police officers themselves, and a flow of information was being provided.' he said.

After both the defendants and their lawyers, as well as the prosecutor, expressed their opinion that Bora Kaplan's request to join the case should be rejected, the Court ruled, 'that he was not directly harmed by the crimes charged against the defendants.' decided to reject Kaplan's request on the grounds that.

"THEY ACCESSED ENGİN DİNÇ'S DAUGHTER'S TABLET"

The first person to present a defense at the hearing was police officer Serkan Dinçer. Explaining that it was Police Chief Engin Dinç who brought him from Trabzon to the General Directorate of Security Intelligence Department and the Ankara Police Narcotics Branch, Dinçer stated that he had served in the Hrant Dink murder investigation.

While working at the Intelligence Department, he stated that as part of his duties, he followed the posts of "FETÖ"members, but that he never tagged or shared them in any way, nor did he correspond with them via email, and that during that period "FETÖ"members declared war on him, leading to his prosecution through various slanders, Serkan Dinçer also voiced the following allegation:

"When Engin Dinç was the Head of the Intelligence Department, his daughter's tablet broke. When it was brought to the department for repair, the police officer looking at it installed remote access software on the tablet and took an image of it. They did this under the instructions of K.A. Later, K.A. and those two police officers, along with the police officer who prepared a fake expert report about me, were dismissed."

Serkan Dinçer noted that during the July 15 coup attempt, he went to the TRT building with Engin Dinç and apprehended the coup plotters, for which he was awarded four months' salary as a bonus. He also stated that while Turgut Aslan, the then-Head of the EGM Counter-Terrorism Department who was shot in the head by coup plotters on July 15, was lying in the hospital and even his own family would not visit him, he volunteered to be his companion and bodyguard, waiting by his side for 12 hours every day, and added, "I wrote him a letter. But it seems they had no heart for it." he said.

"WHO WOULD AN OPERATION AGAINST THE MEŞVERET GROUP BENEFIT?"

Claiming that he was subjected to physical torture for four days when he was detained on November 3, 2023, and that he was asked, "What do you want from our chief K.A.?" and also pressured to testify that the names on their list from the Nurcus' Meşveret group were "FETÖ" members, Serkan Dinçer said, "What kind of relationship does a person with a criminal record like K.A. have with the prosecutor that he visits her and posts a story saying 'The coffee was delicious'? Then this indictment is prepared." he said.

Dinçer continued as follows:

“These things happened to me because I stood tall against the dishonorable FETÖ members. There is no need for them to get information from me. Their own people are already working.”  “I am not a FETÖ member. I have been affiliated with the Meşveret group of the Nurcu movement since my childhood. Who would it benefit to have an operation conducted against the Meşveret group of the Nurcu movement?”

At the end of his defense, Dinçer stated that he is still a civil servant, that all evidence has been collected, and that there is no suspicion of flight, requesting his release and acquittal.

Responding to questions from the presiding judge, Serkan Dinçer stated that he attended public schools, did not stay in 'FETÖ' dormitories, did not enter into an arranged marriage, and that he does not know Cevheri Güven or the other defendants,  when asked by Suna Öztaşdöndüren, the lawyer for defendant Kerem Gökay Öner, 'Are you in the same ideological group as Engin Dinç?' he stated that he did not want to answer the question.

WHICH JOURNALIST'S NAME DID THE PROSECUTOR NOT RECORD?

Former Deputy Head of the Organized Crime Branch (KOM) Şevket Demircan also stated that they were framed as a result of the Ayhan Bora Kaplan operation and that he absolutely did not share Kaplan's statement with Cevheri Güven,  explaining the following:

'The statement that is the subject of the accusation was sent to me by journalist H.T. I say this with regret, but the fact that a PDF of the statement was in the possession of a journalist shows that others had it as well. It had been published in many places, meaning it had become public knowledge. We do not possess the records of the Criminal Court of Peace. I told them that H.T. sent it to me, but for some reason, the prosecutor did not include this name in the statement. I filed a complaint against the prosecutor with the Council of Judges and Prosecutors (HSK) because he was trying to frame us as members of an organization and force us into this case. Ayhan Bora Kaplan's reach is so powerful that he can access everywhere. Knowing about this secret investigation, he said about us, "Wait, let it be revealed which organization they belong to." It is clear who went to the TRT on July 15, everyone knows, but Bora Kaplan is using this.'

One of the defendants, former KOM Branch Manager Kerem Gökay Öner, stated that he had no knowledge or observation regarding the matter, and that he was surprised to see himself declared a "FETÖ" member while a confidentiality order was still in place when he was called in for questioning, adding, 'I am the one who has been tarnished and branded. My life has been spent fighting FETÖ. I was awarded 7 salaries in bonuses on July 15. I am saddened to be here now on charges of harboring FETÖ.' he said.

Former Ankara Deputy Police Chief Murat Çelik also emphasized that they had faced baseless accusations due to the Ayhan Bora Kaplan organization and provided the following defense:

“I have fought against FETÖ since my school days. Finally, on July 15, my struggle turned into an armed conflict. When the July 15 radio communications are listened to, it will be seen how I fought to the death. I was the first to engage in combat at the intersection of the Presidential Complex and the Gendarmerie General Command. Investigate how many dead and wounded there are among the FETÖ members. I am someone who has been strafed by a Cobra helicopter and had a missile fired at me. Whenever the state was in a difficult situation, Murat Çelik was there. FETÖ is not wrong to attack me; I have hurt them deeply. I am a complainant against Cevheri Güven. He is a traitor and an enemy of the homeland who has insulted my late father. From now on, I expect to be killed by FETÖ, if they have the courage. Do I have Stockholm syndrome to send information and documents to my enemy? It is an absurd situation. I did not fight against aliens on July 15.”

After the defendants completed their defenses and the two police officers who took Bora Kaplan's statement, as well as Murat Çelik's driver, were heard as witnesses, the Prosecutor submitted an opinion for the continuation of Serkan Dinçer's detention due to his contact with individuals located abroad. Upon this, Dinçer said, “I have no contact with that person (Cevheri Güven). I could not understand why our prosecutor made this request when there is nothing in the file to support it. I request my acquittal.” he said.

Following the statements of the defense attorneys, the Presiding Judge announced that it was decided to continue Serkan Dinçer's detention, to hear the two lawyers who were present for Bora Kaplan's statement as witnesses, and to adjourn the hearing to April 17.