Hablemitoğlu assassination trial: 'The shooter could be a police officer'

Müyesser YILDIZ -12punto.com.tr

The trial for the assassination of author and academic Assoc. Prof. Necip Hablemitoğlu continued. Police Chief Taner Topsakal, who testified as a witness, stated that a police officer might have killed Hablemitoğlu.

Before the 16th session of the trial, held at the Ankara 28th High Criminal Court, began today, a debate took place between defense attorneys and the presiding judge regarding whether the hearings were being secretly recorded.

Recalling that in yesterday's hearing, Ersan Barkın, the lawyer for the Hablemitoğlu family, stated that the hearings were being secretly recorded and requested a solution, and that the judge had replied, "We will resolve it on Friday," Attorney Eren Turan asked, "What is happening? It is understood that something was discussed among you. What will happen on Friday? We are also curious." The following dialogue ensued:

Judge: We will share it on Friday and satisfy your curiosity.
Atty. Turan: What is the subject?
Judge: It is not related to you, it is leaking out.
Atty. Turan: It concerns us too. We are not broadcasting.
Judge: At the Ankara Courthouse... Let it be Friday, we will see.

Atty. Turan: Will you hold a closed session?
Judge: There will be no closed session. Perhaps we can move it to Sincan.
Atty. Turan: There are no detained defendants here for us to go to Sincan.
Atty. Hüseyin Ersöz: There are no detainees, why should we go to Sincan? What is the justification? We have neither met nor spoken with anyone.

I DID NOT MEAN MÜYESSER ABLA

Atty. Turan: Going to Sincan is of no benefit to anyone. It is a deprived area.
Judge: This place is the real deprived area. No tea, no water.
Atty. Turan: Whatever the precaution is for? Once the hearing is public, those who broadcast will come there too.
Atty. Ali Soykan: Journalists, especially Müyesser Abla, seem to be targeted. Her phone is primitive; she only sends notes from the hearing via SMS.
Judge: A journalist writes and draws. Images and recording are prohibited. We have nothing against Ms. Müyesser.
Müyesser Yıldız: Mr. Judge, I have been following hearings for decades and I know the rules well. Furthermore, my phone does not record. I only send SMS. You can have my phone examined if you wish.

Ersan Barkın, the lawyer for the Hablemitoğlu family who entered the courtroom during these discussions and was informed about the matter, said, "I definitely did not mean Müyesser Abla. I am sure she does not think so either," while commenting on the possibility of holding the hearings in Sincan: "Silivri in Istanbul and Sincan in Ankara are dangerous."

FETÖ POLICE BROUGHT THAT BULLET FROM THE USA

Defendant Enver Altaylı, who connected via SEGBİS from Sincan Prison, stated that the radiators were not working and it was very cold, which is why he came wearing a coat, adding, "I also have a fever. I will try to stay until noon." The judge suggested, "You can wear a scarf, a beanie, or whatever. If you have medicine, take it."

After this dialogue, the first witness, Police Chief Taner Topsakal, was heard. Topsakal, who was dismissed from the Police Department in 2004 and reinstated in recent months, said he met Nuri Gökhan Bozkır after being arrested in the Sauna gang conspiracy, and that Bozkır had introduced him to Zihni Çakır. Upon the judge's question, Topsakal stated that he was within FETÖ until 2000 and attended chats and meetings; he emphasized that murder was not mentioned back then, but Hablemitoğlu was mentioned with hatred and the organization did not like him.

Topsakal also explained the following about Nuri Gökhan Bozkır:

"We met a few times. He said that while working at the Special Forces Command (ÖKK) MAK, they infiltrated FETÖ with a secret mission and prepared a thousand-page report, and when the organization found out, they destroyed the report and set him up. I took him to the Anti-Terror Branch (TEM). What he said did not add up; they were far-fetched things. That is why those at TEM did not take it seriously. He then disappeared, and we lost contact. I only heard him say to Zihni Çakır, 'There was activity at the ÖKK on the day of the murder. Altan Bora threw something into Lake Mogan in a bag.' I did not hear him say anything about the other names here."

In the continuation of his statement, emphasizing that he showed the file superficially while giving a statement to the Prosecutor and that the bullet caught his attention the most because he used to work in the homicide bureau, Topsakal said he made the following assessment:

"The bullet used in the Hablemitoğlu murder was not in Turkey at that time. It was American-made and only used there. There was only one way to obtain it; police officers were being sent to Ranger training in the USA at that time, and most of them were FETÖ members. We do not take our weapons when we go abroad. But those who went to Ranger training did, and they returned with these bullets. They would bring them and gift them here and there."

"Also, it became a habit; they started loading this as the first bullet in the magazine. I said, 'Our police are used to using these types of weapons.' Since they were all sent to training, I thought, 'I wonder if a special team is being established in the police for operations?' Even though it looks like a very professional shot, I don't think it is. It is a murder committed with the certainty that it would be covered up."

"We were a special team, we had solved many unsolved murders. We wanted to be involved in this murder; but a special team was established, they did not include us. Yurt Atayün and Akın Güven were there, they were FETÖ members. We talked about how 'They will cover it up.'"

When reminded that in his 2017 prosecutor's statement he indicated that he introduced Zihni Çakır to Gökhan Nuri Bozkır, Topsakal replied, "A confusion. No, I did not know Zihni Çakır before Bozkır." Upon another question, Topsakal noted that he heard that the base station records of many police officers outside the region were detected during the Hablemitoğlu murder.

When Hablemitoğlu family lawyer Ersan Barkın asked Topsakal a question, saying, "This panel did not see Gökhan Nuri Bozkır, the previous panel did. By releasing him, they caused him to flee," Bozkır's lawyer Emrah Yücel reacted as follows:

"My colleague is casting aspersions on the previous panel by saying 'caused his escape' and is also putting you under pressure. Gökhan Nuri did not flee from this file. When he was released, for some reason, an arrest warrant was issued in another case. Otherwise, he complied with judicial control in this case."

Atty. Barkın replied, "I am never casting aspersions on anyone or putting them under pressure. There is a fact. The released defendant fled. These defendants are also under suspicion because of him. Mine is a subjective assessment."

THIS CASE WOULD HAVE EVOLVED ELSEWHERE

Levent Göktaş's lawyer Ali Soykan reminded Topsakal that he stated he possessed certain information while giving a statement to the Prosecutor, and pointed out that what he told about the bullet was not in his statement. Topsakal made the following explanation:

"I learned about the bullet from him, but what I told here are probably assessments that came to my mind later."

Upon this, Atty. Ersan Barkın asked, "Are you sure or not?" while Atty. Ali Soykan commented, "If it were in the statement, this investigation would have already evolved elsewhere."

Upon these questions, Prosecutor Zafer Ergün took the floor again and asked, "You said that the police officers going to the USA brought this bullet. Do only police officers know about the bullet, magazine, etc.? Can these be confined to a professional group, or is it a known matter? Can others also obtain these bullets?"

Tamer Topsakal replied, "Those who deal with shooting know these. Only those who go abroad can find these bullets; they can be obtained by hand."

Atty. Eren Turan also pointed out that Topsakal spoke not only about FETÖ police officers bringing this bullet but also about the murder being committed recklessly and the team investigating the murder being FETÖ members.

This news is being updated.

News Source: 12punto