14.12.2025 00:05
Journalist Mehmet Akif Ersoy, who was arrested as part of a drug investigation, backtracked on his statement made during his defense in court, where he said, "This is a very clear political operation." In a written statement made through his lawyers, Ersoy indicated that his words exceeded their intended purpose and led to misunderstandings regarding both the government and judicial authorities.
Former Habertürk Editor-in-Chief Mehmet Akif Ersoy was arrested on charges of "facilitating drug use" and "establishing an organization for the purpose of committing a crime."
"THIS IS CLEARLY A POLITICAL OPERATION" In his defense at the court that decided on his arrest, Ersoy stated, "I have no corruption, my friends are known. At this point, certain individuals have incited others against me to make false accusations, I do not know who they are, but when I find out, we will file a complaint against them. I lost my bad feeling from yesterday, I feel better now. This is clearly a political operation, my friends were involved. There is no evidence, just the testimony of a secret witness," he expressed.
HARSH REACTION FROM AK PARTY MEMBER ŞAMİL TAYYAR Mehmet Akif Ersoy's statement, "This is clearly a political operation," drew a reaction from former AK Party Member of Parliament Şamil Tayyar. In a statement on his social media account, Tayyar said: "I will not delve into the allegations against him based on the presumption of innocence. I have a couple of comments regarding the term political operation. He has influential friends in the state and politics, but he is not an important figure that would necessitate a political operation. While it is possible to remove a manager within the TMSF in a second, why would such an operation be carried out? Or when an operation is conducted, which group or clique would lose political weight? What is his stature that he could burn such a large area? He has assigned himself too much meaning. I think he believed he was untouchable thanks to his influential friends, and he did not expect to fall so hard from the top of the relationships he recklessly trampled on; now he is in shock. I hope he learns a lesson from what he has experienced."
STEPPED BACK FROM "POLITICAL OPERATION" STATEMENT: IT EXCEEDED MY INTENTION Finally, Mehmet Akif Ersoy, through his lawyers, made a written statement regarding the issue, stating that his words exceeded his intention and led to misunderstandings towards both the government and judicial authorities.
Ersoy's statement is as follows: "As you know, I was taken into custody on Tuesday evening. I spent the night in detention completely sleepless and stressed. After a health check, forensic examination, prosecutor's interrogation, and court statement process, I went through an extremely exhausting process both physically and mentally. Today, my lawyer shared some social media comments regarding my arrest process with me. Among these were comments and criticisms made by our elder Şamil Tayyar regarding my 'political operation' statement. This gave me the opportunity to revisit my statement. I realized that my words, which were the subject of Şamil Bey's criticism, exceeded my intention and opened the door to misunderstandings towards both the government and judicial authorities. Therefore, I would like to emphasize that this expression is unfortunate in terms of the perception it created and does not reflect my intention. The fact is; there is no need for a political operation for me to be removed from my position in the media group managed by TMSF. A declaration of will in this direction is sufficient. On the other hand, judicial authorities are obliged to evaluate the reports and complaints submitted to them, and this is part of their duties."
"THE ENTITY I TARGETED IS THIS PERSON AND CIRCLES TRYING TO MANIPULATE THE PROCESSES" When I say that I have been subjected to an operation, what I mean is that some individuals who reported to the judicial authorities or filed complaints while concealing their identities have attempted to mislead the judicial authorities by conducting a baseless, unjust, and organized operation against me. The entity I targeted with this statement is not the judicial authorities; it is these individuals and circles who are trying to manipulate the processes, knowingly or unknowingly. I practice a profession where competition is ruthless. I have certain insights into the background of news made on gossip sites and social media accounts. I have heard that there are individuals whose ambitions are far beyond their intellect, who roam around saying, "I will blow up Akif" after becoming my adversary, or who harbor enmity because certain demands and expectations were not met. Such statements and personal enmities have strengthened my belief that the process against me is being manipulated. In any case, the accusations I face are far beyond being baseless allegations that are not crimes in the legal sense regarding my private life; they are extremely humiliating and constitute serious attacks on my personality, resembling accusations aimed at obtaining benefits through substance and sexuality.
I MAY HAVE USED EXPRESSIONS SUBJECT TO MISUNDERSTANDING DUE TO SHOCK, FATIGUE, AND INTENSE STRESS It is clear that such allegations carry a heavy slander aimed at my life and professional reputation. However, while expressing my reaction to these accusations, I may have used expressions subject to misunderstanding due to the shock, fatigue, and intense stress I experienced. I am making this statement to clarify the truth and to eliminate any potential misunderstandings that have arisen. My aim is to ensure that the process is understood correctly and to reiterate that I have not made any unjust insinuations towards any authority. I trust the public's common sense and sincerely believe that the process will conclude fairly and transparently.