05.08.2026 13:10
Former Staff Captain Burkay Karatepe, who was part of the assassination team targeting President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in Marmaris during the July 15 coup attempt and was captured 10 years later, gave a 69-page statement as part of the investigation. Karatepe stated that on the night of the coup, they were given the order 'Our mission is to take the President away,' and made striking statements ranging from the stolen exam questions to the Pennsylvania visit and the escape process.
Burkay Karatepe, a fugitive coup plotter and former Staff Captain who was involved in the assassination attempt against President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Marmaris during the July 15 coup attempt and was captured in Afyonkarahisar 10 years later, gave a 69-page statement during his 4-day interrogation, benefiting from effective remorse. Karatepe recounted his 28-year history with the organization, the stolen exam questions, and the unknown details of the assassination night.
CAPTURED AFTER 10 YEARS, GAVE A 69-PAGE STATEMENT
Former Special Forces member Staff Captain Burkay Karatepe, who fled using rugged terrain after the assassination attempt in Marmaris and managed to hide for 10 years, was captured at a house where he was hiding in Afyonkarahisar and handed over to the Muğla Police Department. During the 4-day interrogation process coordinated by Muğla Chief Public Prosecutor Necati Kayaközü and managed by Muğla Police Chief Süleyman Karadeniz, Karatepe stated that he wanted to benefit from the Effective Remorse Law and disclosed the 28-year FETÖ structure in all its details.
CODE NAME "SELIM" AND CATALOG MARRIAGE
According to the news report by Halit Turan from Sabah; Karatepe, who stated in his statement that his first contact with the organization began in 1998 during his middle school years in Eskişehir, reported that he was directed by "civilian liaisons" during his military high school and military academy years. Karatepe's prominent statements were as follows:
- Secrecy Tactics: He stated that while studying at İzmir Maltepe Military High School, they were taught to "perform prayers through implication" to avoid being exposed in organization houses.
- Code Name: He stated that during his military academy period, the civilian liaison he was handed over to in Ankara gave him the code name "SELIM".
- Catalog Marriage: He said that in 2013, he had an imam marriage with an "older student sister" from Erzurum, whom he was introduced to through a catalog by a "marriage brother", in the presence of organization officials.
QUESTIONS STOLEN WITH A USB FLASH DRIVE
One of the most striking details in Karatepe's statement was about the staff officer exam and his contact with the organization's ringleader:
- Exam Questions Leaked: Karatepe, who recounted that they were taken to a camp in Mamak one month before the 2015 staff officer exam, confessed that the questions given by the civilian liaison on an encrypted USB flash drive appeared verbatim in the exam, and thus he passed the academy.
- Visit to Pennsylvania: Karatepe, who stated that he went to the USA for a parachute course in 2012 and then moved to Pennsylvania on the organization's orders, said he was taken to ringleader Fetullah Gülen wearing a hat and glasses to avoid recognition, and that the Special Forces knife he brought as a gift was not liked by the organization's managers.
"WE WILL TAKE THE PRESIDENT"
Karatepe, who stated that they joined the MAK and SAT teams at Çiğli Military Air Base on July 15, shared the following details about the Marmaris operation: "At Çiğli, Şükrü Seymen asked the team, 'Is there anyone among us who is not from the Hizmet movement?', and no negative response came. It was explicitly stated that the military had taken over the administration and that our duty was 'to take the President and bring him to the designated place'."
Karatepe stated that they landed in Marmaris around 03:00 on July 16, learned the location of the residence by asking citizens and a taxi driver on the road, and when they approached and fire was opened, he returned fire without aiming at a specific target. He stated that when they realized President Erdoğan was not at the residence, the security police were beaten, and since the helicopters could not land, they fled into the terrain.
DETAILS OF THE ESCAPE: FLEEING TO IZMIR BY HITCHHIKING
The former captain, who stated that he left the group when he realized the coup had failed, described in detail how he removed his camouflage, acquired civilian clothes, withdrew money from an ATM, first went to Muğla city center by minibus, and then, without entering the bus terminal, hitchhiked from the roadside and fled in a pickup truck to İzmir Bornova.