Bora Kaplan, sentenced to 68 years in prison: “While everyone was hiding under their wife’s skirt on July 15…”

The trial of the Ayhan Bora Kaplan organized crime syndicate, involving 61 defendants and featuring the names of former Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu and Supreme Court member and former Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor Yüksel Kocaman, has concluded in 7 months. The case also saw the police officers from the Ankara Anti-Smuggling and Organized Crime (KOM) branch who conducted the operation later accused of attempting a “coup against the government” and arrested. Bora Kaplan, who is celebrating his birthday today and faced two life sentences, one of which was aggravated, was sentenced to a total of 68 years in prison. Meanwhile, a total of 17 detained defendants were sentenced to various terms and released with judicial control measures requiring them to remain in the country, taking into account the time they had already served. In the case, it was decided that the detention of Muhammet Kaplan, Adnan Kaplan, and Fethi Koyuncu, who were sentenced to between 13 and 23 years in prison, would continue, excluding Bora Kaplan. When asked for his final statement, Bora Kaplan, referring to the July 15 coup attempt, remarked: “I paid the price. While everyone was hiding under their wife’s skirt, I fought until the morning. If the FETÖ members had taken over this country, they would have conducted a trial just like this. You are doing the same thing.”

During today’s session of the trial, held by the Ankara 32nd High Criminal Court in the courtroom within the Sincan Prison complex, Bora Kaplan called out to his relatives before the panel took their seats, saying, “Don’t be sad, don’t be sad. What kind of sentence can they give?” The Gendarmerie Commander warned him to sit down. After shouting, “What’s the problem?” at the Commander, Bora Kaplan continued to address his relatives, saying, “The dishonesty they are committing will surely end one day.”

After the court panel took their seats, the President received the Prosecutor’s opinion regarding the requests from the defendants and their lawyers to expand the prosecution. The Prosecutor requested that these requests be rejected on the grounds that they were intended to prolong the trial.

The Court President then announced that dozens of requests, primarily the demand to hear Süleyman Soylu’s cousin Sadık Soylu and nephew Fatih Soylu as witnesses, had been rejected.

POWER OF ATTORNEY OF THE FUGITIVE SECRET WITNESS

Meanwhile, the President announced another interesting decision. In last week’s session, Mehmet Erdem Döş, the lawyer for the fugitive secret witness with the code M7, Serdar Sertçelik, had submitted a power of attorney along with some documents from the case file where the KOM police officers are being tried, as well as a petition from Sertçelik stating, “My statement, which I gave under pressure from the police, should not be used as a basis for the verdict.”

The Court President stated that, as a result of the examination, the power of attorney Sertçelik had given to Attorney Döş was only issued for divorce cases and therefore had no “legal value,” and that a copy of the decision taken on this matter would be sent to the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office.

INCENDIARY REMARKS FROM BORA KAPLAN

Following this, the defendants were asked for their final statements. Some of the defendants said the following in summary:

Barış Kurt (crying): “There is nothing to say. My presence here is contrary to the natural flow of life. I did not commit a crime. I want to feel that I am being tried in a court of the Republic of Turkey, not in the court of another country.”

Deniz Urcan: “I have not committed any crime. I am a person trying to earn my bread. God is my witness, I have no crime, no sin. I request my release, including house arrest.”

Mahmut Gökhan Çanga (crying): “Until now, I have been accused of killing my friend. He didn’t come to his mother’s or father’s house; he came to my house. Is my crime opening the door? May God make those who directed this accusation at me suffer. But I trust your justice.”

Bora Kaplan: “From the first hearing until today, it has meant almost nothing. What we say now also has no meaning, but we are saying it for the record. Such a trial has never been seen in history; I think it is a first, because you acted as if a trial was being held. Actually, you did not hold a trial. The only thing you did was take our statements. Other than that, you didn’t do the slightest thing. What evidence did you collect? The goal is to give a sentence here. I do not believe in your justice. I do not believe you will give a fair decision. I said it from the very beginning; you joined hands with the police. You made up a cover to sentence us. At the stage we are at now, can such a trial end in 7 months? Has it ever been seen in history? A theft case takes 3 years to finish. There are 61 defendants and 10 incidents; the trial will end in 7 months. We said from the very beginning that we would be slaughtered. If the FETÖ members had taken over this country, they would have conducted a trial just like this. You are doing the same thing. Unfortunately, I paid the price for this country. While everyone was hiding under their wife’s skirt, I fought until the morning that night. You swore an oath to your honor and dignity when you started your profession. Then act justly. If there was even a little bit of justice, you would have collected all the evidence and brought it. Why didn’t you bring the evidence? Because it would have been in our favor. You did not put any evidence in our favor into the file. If you had, you couldn’t have sentenced us, but God is great. Everyone’s justice may falter, but one day God’s justice will surely be served. My only wish is that one day you too will be tried here, and may God show me that. And I am sure you will be tried. If not because of me, then because of someone else; this will surely come out of you one day. I am telling the members; your president is acting unlawfully, acting unjustly. Do not sign these. You are doing wrong. Tomorrow or the next day, history will surely turn and hold you accountable. There is no possibility that it won’t; because from the very beginning, when we were first detained, it was clear that we would be slaughtered. Right now, you are slaughtering us. Just like the Prosecutor. Such a trial has never happened in history. You are committing atrocities that Israel has not committed against Palestine. You are committing atrocities that Netanyahu has not committed. The decision you make is null and void in my eyes. Whatever decision you make; I do not accept it, and I don’t care.”

Upon the applause of the defendants’ relatives for Bora Kaplan, the Court President warned, “Be quiet.” When Kaplan replied, “What quiet?”, the President ordered the gendarmerie to remove Kaplan from the courtroom. Kaplan shouted at the gendarmerie who wanted to take his arm, “Get off, don’t squeeze my arm. I’m leaving, I’m leaving.”

After this incident, the Court President warned everyone once again to be quiet and stated that otherwise, he would clear the courtroom and read the verdict to an empty room if necessary.

13 RELEASES ALONGSIDE THE VERDICT

After the final statements of all defendants were taken, the Court President announced the sentences and acquittals for 10 separate charges, including organization leadership and membership, the pulling of Erkan Doğan’s teeth with pliers, the murder of Mahfuz Tatar, and the death of Semih Arslan.

Applying discretionary reduction to very few defendants, the Court sentenced Bora Kaplan to a total of 68 years and 3 months in prison: 10 years for the organization, 15 years for the Erkan Doğan incident, 6 years for the intentional injury of Altan Tozar, and 13 years and 6 months for the murder of Mahfuz Tatar.

Bora Kaplan, Mahmut Gökhan Çanga, Sercan Keleş, and Deniz Urcan were acquitted of the charge of killing Semih Arslan and making it look like a suicide. During the announcement of this decision, Mahmut Gökhan Çanga, a former lawyer, was seen sobbing.

In the case, there were no detained defendants left other than Muhammet Kaplan, Adnan Kaplan, and Fethi Koyuncu, who were sentenced to between 13 and 23 years in prison, excluding Bora Kaplan. Ersoy Yahya, who was decided to be released with the verdict, could not leave the prison because he is detained in a money laundering case.

After the verdict was read, Bora Kaplan’s mother reacted to the panel, saying, “May God burn your insides too.”

Müyesser YILDIZ

December 3, 2024