29.08.2026 15:01
Comedian Deniz Göktaş, who was re-arrested on charges of 'praising the crime and the criminal' before being released from prison after a release decision, made a statement on social media. Göktaş said, 'Every two months, a new accusation comes out of a 90-minute show,' noting that his morale and health are fine.
After the release decision was made, comedian Deniz Göktaş, who was re-arrested on charges of "praising the crime and the criminal" citing other remarks from the same show titled "Dead Sea," stated, "Out of a 90-minute show, a new charge emerges every two months. I'm fine, my morale and health are good."
RE-ARRESTED
Comedian Deniz Göktaş, who was detained on charges of "insulting the president" and "publicly inciting the public to hatred and hostility" due to statements in his show "Dead Sea," had been re-arrested on charges of "praising the crime and the criminal" for other remarks in the same show without leaving prison after the release decision.
"IF I HAD KNOWN, I WOULD HAVE DANCED A LITTLE"
In a statement on his social media account regarding the issue, Göktaş noted that he had one good and one bad piece of news, recalling that he was arrested after being released. In his post, Göktaş included the following statements:
"I learned these two pieces of news at the same speed you read them. This time, I was arrested over a joke about the Daltons, on the charge of 'praising the crime and the criminal.' It was an ordinary 58th day in prison. In one hand I had Cici Bebe, in the other İhsan Oktay. I was wandering through the corridors of Constantinople. They said 'You have SEGBİS!' It was neither a holiday nor a celebration; we went out to the corridor thinking what this SEGBİS was about. During the one-minute corridor journey between the cell and SEGBİS, I was free, I didn't know. If I had known, I would have danced a little.
They said my lawyers were not notified, that I normally should come to the hall, but there was an urgent situation. They read the text subject to the charge. I felt as if I had said 'We should not beat children' and was asked 'Why do you think children should be beaten?' I talked about life, our Turkish language, and nothing more than comedy. They decided to re-arrest me. I will celebrate the opening of the judicial year here; may it be a successful season.
Out of a 90-minute show, a new charge emerges every two months. The full show is on my YouTube channel instead of Reels, and if anyone has focus issues, I recommend a phone detox. It did me good. I'm fine, my morale and health are good. This month passed as quickly as the Augusts of my childhood. Fortunately, there's no school in September. While writing this letter, the electricity went out for 10 seconds in prison. In the darkness, all the inmates in their cells whistled and shouted. I felt like a tour bus entering a tunnel on the way to a picnic in elementary school."