Breaking News: Talent manager Ayşe Barım sentenced to 12 years and 6 months in prison

A verdict has been reached in the trial of talent manager Ayşe Barım, who was accused of organizing artists during the Gezi Park protests and had spent 248 days in pre-trial detention.

The Istanbul 26th High Criminal Court sentenced Barım to 12 years and 6 months in prison for the crime of “aiding in the attempt to overthrow the Government of the Republic of Turkey.”

There will be no arrest, and Barım's travel ban remains in effect.

Barım had been facing up to 30 years in prison for the alleged crime of “attempting to overthrow the Government of the Republic of Turkey or to prevent it from performing its duties.”

AYŞE BARIM DENIED THE CHARGES

According to a report by Cumhuriyet, Ayşe Barım, who presented her defense against the prosecutor's opinion requesting an aggravated life sentence, denied the charges. Stating that she has been in a process she cannot make sense of since January 2025, Barım said that she has never taken a political stance throughout her life.

Expressing that she has been able to access healthcare services since her release, Barım said, “Thank you for releasing me. I want to have my surgeries in the coming period. While there is still no concrete evidence in the file, I am being asked to be punished more severely. I am innocent.”

Emphasizing that she is a woman trying to fulfill her civic duties, Barım stated, “I have only worked throughout my life. I want my right to life to be protected. I request my acquittal.”

PROSECUTOR: OUR OPINION REMAINS VALID

Barım’s lawyers requested a re-evaluation of the prosecutor's final opinion. However, the trial prosecutor responded to the request by saying, “Our opinion remains valid as it is; there are no changes.”

“THE OPINION IS NOT BASED ON CONCRETE EVIDENCE”

In his defense against the prosecutor's opinion requesting an aggravated life sentence in the Gezi Park case, one of Ayşe Barım’s lawyers, Sedat Özyurt, stated that the accusations lacked legal basis. Özyurt emphasized that there was no concrete evidence in the file.

“We are trying to prove something that does not exist here. We are trying to explain that a defendant who did nothing has not committed a crime,” said Özyurt, reminding the court of Article 38 of the Constitution, adding, “There can be no crime or punishment without law. There is an unlawful accusation of a crime within the scope of this file, and the prosecutor's opinion is not based on any evidence.”

Özyurt stated that the element of force and violence, which is the subject of the accusation in the file, has not been proven, and that it has been demonstrated that the artists went to Gezi Park of their own volition, not under the instructions of Ayşe Barım.

Stating in his defense that Ayşe Barım had no actions or posts involving force and violence, Özyurt said, “Likewise, the actors affiliated with ID İletişim have no actions involving force and violence, nor any words praising force and violence.”

THE ACTORS' MEETING WITH ERDOĞAN

Lawyer Sedat Özyurt also touched upon the meeting that actors Halit Ergenç and Ceyda Düvenci held with the then-Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

Stating that the names who would attend the meeting were determined from Ankara, Özyurt said, “Even if Ayşe Barım had directed them, this contact was made with the country's elected prime minister within the scope of democratic resolution processes.”

Özyurt also said that it could not be proven that Ayşe Barım had a ‘co-perpetrator’ relationship with Osman Kavala, Can Atalay, and Çiğdem Mater, who were convicted in the Gezi case. Stating that for co-perpetration, the perpetrators must have functional control over the act together, Özyurt emphasized that this element was not present in the concrete case.

“In the concrete case, there is no fact indicating that the defendant wanted to overthrow the Republic of Turkey,” said Özyurt, stating that she had expressed an opinion to Memet Ali Alabora not to publish a press release whose content was not even known, and that there was no encouragement involved. Özyurt said that being at the scene of an event alone would not constitute the crime of co-perpetration.

"THERE IS NO FORCE OR VIOLENCE, AN ACQUITTAL SHOULD BE GRANTED"

One of Ayşe Barım’s lawyers, Aslı Kibar, said in her defense that Barım had participated in the Gezi Park protests only once and for professional purposes.

Kibar emphasized that there was no action in the file that would constitute a criminal element.

“There is no force or violence or any crime here,” said Kibar, requesting the court panel to issue an acquittal in accordance with the precedents of the Court of Cassation and in line with law and conscience.

“THE INFORMANT SAID HE HAD NO CRIMINAL RECORD IN COURT, BUT A CRIMINAL RECORD EMERGED”

One of Ayşe Barım’s lawyers, Deniz Ketenci, began her defense by evaluating the evidence in the file. Ketenci stated that the investigation into Barım was initiated upon a tip-off, but that there was no concrete evidence in this tip-off or its annexes that a crime had been committed.

“The investigation began without evidence,” said Ketenci, reminding that the informant was heard in court.

Ketenci said, “Your Honor, you asked the informant yourself. The informant stated that he wrote what he read on social media into the tip-off and that he did not know Ayşe Barım. When asked, ‘With what motivation did you make this tip-off?’, he replied, ‘with civic sensitivity.’”

Stating that the informant declared he had no criminal record while being heard as a witness, Ketenci said that his criminal records emerged later.

News Source: 12punto