18.09.2025 15:12
In the case involving the Ayhan Bora Kaplan criminal organization in Ankara, which includes 11 defendants and is based on 'secret witness' testimony, the court ruled to decline jurisdiction and sent the file to the heavy penal court. No defendants remain in custody, and the defendants requested acquittal.
As part of the 'secret witness' investigation related to the Ayhan Bora Kaplan criminal organization conducted by the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, former Deputy Provincial Police Chief Murat Çelik, former Organized Crime Department Head Kerem Gökay Öner, former deputy department head Şevket Demircan, former department commissioners Ufuk Gültekin, Gökhan Karaca, and Metehan İlkyaz, as well as civilian defendants Nurullah Özgür Kopuk, Ramazan Kubat, Adem Kaçan, Mustafa Çotuk, and Erdoğan Sertçelik were charged with 'Abuse of office', 'Disclosure of duty-related secrets', 'Concealment of a criminal', and 'Attempting to influence a witness'. An indictment was prepared and a case was opened. In the hearing held on September 3, 2024, at the Ankara 13th Criminal Court of First Instance, a release decision was made for 7 detained defendants, including police personnel, in which 4 suspects were tried without detention. Thus, there were no detained defendants left in the case.
ALL DEFENDANTS REQUESTED THEIR ACQUITTAL
In the 4th hearing held today at the Ankara 13th Criminal Court of First Instance, the defendants who were not in detention, Metehan İlkyaz, Nurullah Özgür Kopuk, Ufuk Gültekin, Gökhan Karaca, and their lawyers attended. The judge granted the defendants the right to speak. All defendants stated that they had nothing to say at this stage of the case and reiterated their previous statements, requesting their acquittal.
DECISION OF INCOMPETENCE
After the lawyers' defenses, the public prosecutor, in his opinion, stated that although an indictment had been prepared for the defendants regarding the charge of 'Concealment of a criminal', the authority to conduct the trial belonged to the heavy criminal court, and requested that the case be sent to the competent heavy criminal court. The defendants and their lawyers expressed that they did not agree with the opinion, stating that the trial would remain in limbo, and requested acquittal. The judge ruled that the authority to conduct the trial belonged to the heavy criminal court and decided to send the case to the competent heavy criminal court with a decision of incompetence.