The second session of the trial involving 7 defendants, including former Habertürk TV Editor-in-Chief Mehmet Akif Ersoy, was held at the Istanbul 19th High Criminal Court.
The defendants are facing charges of "qualified sexual assault," "establishing a criminal organization," "trafficking or providing narcotic or stimulant substances," and "facilitating the use of narcotic substances."
Detained defendants Mehmet Akif Ersoy and Mustafa Manaz, as well as defendant Ufuk Tetik, who is being tried without detention, and their lawyers attended the hearing. Defendants Ahmet Göçmez, Nurullah Mahmut Dündar, Tolga Aykut, and social media influencer Taner Çağlı were not present at the session.
The court panel heard the statements of the victims and witnesses during the hearing. Taking the floor after the statements, Ersoy argued that the alleged acts did not take place and that there is no evidence regarding the accusations.
Recalling that he apologized to some individuals in the previous session, Ersoy said, "No one is a complainant. I apologized to some names in the last session; I also apologize to Meltem and Elif for what they experienced due to being my friends."
In his defense, Ersoy also rejected the charge of forming an organization, stating, "There is no organization here; I am not an organization leader or anything of the sort." Claiming that men were placed in the position of defendants and women in the position of victims during the investigation process, Ersoy requested his release and acquittal.
Ersoy said, "Everyone was a suspect at the beginning. Everyone is a victim here. I request my release. If you type my name into the internet, you will see slander, insults, and ugly allegations; you can be sure that in this state, let alone fleeing, I cannot even leave my house. I request my release and acquittal."
News Source: 12punto
