13.07.2026 14:20
The Ministry of Justice announced that 25 suspects, mostly with military backgrounds, were detained in operations conducted as part of the investigation into the helicopter crash that killed Muhsin Yazıcıoğlu and five others, and that 20 pistols, 2,507 rounds of ammunition, 35 magazines, and 2 shotguns were seized in searches at the suspects' addresses.
A new development has occurred in the investigation launched by the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office regarding the death of the late Chairman of the Great Unity Party, Muhsin Yazıcıoğlu, and his companions in a helicopter crash on March 25, 2009. Simultaneous raids were carried out in 10 provinces as part of the investigation.
The prosecutor's office identified 29 suspects against whom concrete evidence was found for the crimes of "Establishing, Managing, and Being a Member of an Armed Terrorist Organization" and "Premeditated Willful Killing." As of 05:00 on July 13, 2026, raids were conducted at designated addresses in Istanbul, Izmir, Balıkesir, Adana, Antalya, Çanakkale, Bursa, Isparta, and Afyonkarahisar, centered in Ankara. As a result of the operation, 25 of the 27 suspects on the list were captured and taken into custody.
Dursun Özmen DAVUT UÇUM AND AYDIN ÖZSICAK, CONVICTED IN THE FETÖ MILITARY STRUCTURING CASE, ARE AMONG THE SUSPECTS As part of the investigation, former police chief Dursun Özmen, who was previously tried in the Yazıcıoğlu case on charges of "forgery of documents" and "misuse of office," was also taken into custody.
Meanwhile, it was noted that suspects Davut Uçum and Aydın Özsıcak, who were seen removing GPS devices from the helicopter wreckage and were convicted in the FETÖ military structuring case, are in prison.
As part of the investigation, Ahmet Turhan, Bekir Cerikci, Cemal Şahin, Ebubekir S. Yüksekkaya, Sedat Kılıçaslan, Dursun Özmen, Nedim Bakırhan, Ersöz Sağlam, Nusret Memiş, Ferudun Seren, Gülseren Özişik, Halil İbrahim Açan, Hikmet Tanıl, Recep Ercan, İsmail Kaya, Kerem Mumcuoğlu, Mehmet Çağlar, Mehmet Sevdim, Melike Sinem Uçum, Suat Kaplan, Fatih Bengi, Tezcan Kaymaz, Ali Armağan, Kenan Köksal, and Şerife Armağan were taken into custody.
It was determined that suspects Nihat Biçer and İrfan Yavuz are abroad. The chief prosecutor's office stated that procedures for the capture of these individuals are ongoing.
MINISTRY OF JUSTICE ANNOUNCES DETAILS OF THE OPERATION Meanwhile, the Ministry of Justice shared details of the investigation regarding the death of the late Chairman of the Great Unity Party, Muhsin Yazıcıoğlu, and his accompanying party officials Erhan Üstündağ, Yüksel Yancı, Murat Çetinkaya, İHA reporter İsmail Güneş, and Mustafa Kaya İstektepe in the helicopter crash that occurred on March 25, 2009.
It was noted that as part of the investigation, comprehensive examinations were conducted taking into account the investigations previously carried out by the Kahramanmaraş Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, the Malatya Special Authorized Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, and the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office regarding the crash/accident of the helicopter and subsequent events, as well as the opinion of the Court of Cassation Chief Public Prosecutor's Office.
STRONG SUSPICION OF THE CRIME OF "PREMEDIATED WILLFUL KILLING" Accordingly, evaluations were made regarding military jet pilots identified as having flown over the scene on the day of the incident, personnel assigned to the military crash investigation team who were assessed to have been deliberately sent after the alleged crash of the military helicopter that went to the scene, personnel assessed to have removed devices by the civilian crash investigation team working at the scene after the crash of the helicopter carrying Muhsin Yazıcıoğlu, in coordination with the military crash investigation team, and personnel from the General Directorate of Security responsible for coordinate determination.
In this context, it was stated that concrete evidence has been found indicating the existence of strong suspicion that these individuals committed the crime of "premeditated willful killing" as part of the activities of the Fethullahist Armed Terrorist Organization.
ARSENAL FOUND IN THEIR HOMES In the statement, it was recalled that under the coordination of the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, a simultaneous operation was carried out by the Ankara Provincial Police Department Organized Crime Branch Directorate targeting 27 suspects in 10 provinces centered in Ankara at 05:00 this morning, and 25 suspects were taken into custody.
It was reported that during searches at the suspects' residences and workplaces, 20 pistols, 2,507 rounds of ammunition of various calibers, 35 magazines, and 2 shotguns were seized. The statement said, "The investigation into the incident in which the late Muhsin Yazıcıoğlu and 5 others lost their lives continues meticulously and comprehensively in order to reveal the material truth in all its aspects, to identify the person or persons responsible for the incident, and to ensure they are held accountable before the law."