Prison sentence for MHP mayor Osman Türkyılmaz in extortion case

A verdict has been reached regarding former Yahşihan Mayor Osman Türkyılmaz and former Yahşihan Municipality Zoning Director Mustafa Tekertarla, who were on trial in Kırıkkale on charges of "extortion." The Kırıkkale 2nd High Criminal Court sentenced both Türkyılmaz and Tekertarla to 6 years and 8 months in prison each.

The other 9 defendants tried in the case were each sentenced to 3 years and 4 months in prison on the grounds that they "participated in the crime in the capacity of aiding and abetting."

Türkyılmaz, Tekertarla, İbrahim Aktuğ, Ülkü Toksoy, Fatih Metin, Tayfun Arslan, and Murat Tanır attended the hearing along with their lawyers. One of the defendants, Bilal Ulucan, joined the hearing via SEGBİS from the province where he is located. Kemal Toksoy, Cafer Akkuzulu, and İsmail Altay did not attend the hearing.

In his defense, Türkyılmaz claimed that the case was a "political setup" against him and requested his acquittal. Tekertarla and the other defendants also denied the charges and requested acquittal.

The court panel also decided to deprive Türkyılmaz of the right to exercise certain rights under Article 53/5 of the Turkish Penal Code. Furthermore, it was ruled that judicial control measures be applied to all defendants once a month.

INVESTIGATION PROCESS

As part of the investigation conducted by the Kırıkkale Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, Osman Türkyılmaz, along with Mustafa Tekertarla, İbrahim Aktuğ, Ülkü Toksoy, Fatih Metin, Tayfun Arslan, Murat Tanır, Bilal Ulucan, Kemal Toksoy, Cafer Akkuzulu, and İsmail Altay, were taken into custody on May 27 and August 19 of last year.

Within the scope of the investigation, Türkyılmaz, Tekertarla, Ülkü Toksoy, İbrahim Aktuğ, and Tayfun Arslan were arrested, while the others were released. The detained defendants had been released in previous hearings under judicial control conditions.

In the indictment prepared by the Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, prison sentences ranging from 5 to 10 years were requested for some defendants for the crime of "extortion by coercion," and sentences ranging from 2.5 to 5 years were requested for the other defendants on the grounds that they aided in the crime.

News Source: 12punto