16.02.2026 12:43
In the case of "harassment of interns in the Turkish Grand National Assembly," following the acceptance of the appeal against the release decision for 4 defendants, 3 defendants were re-arrested, and a warrant was issued for 1 defendant.
In the investigation regarding the allegation that some personnel working as chefs in the Turkish Grand National Assembly (TBMM) sexually harassed high school-aged intern students, 4 defendants were recently released. The objection of the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office against the releases was accepted.
3 PEOPLE WERE ARRESTED, 1 IS WANTED
As a result, 3 defendants were re-arrested. Efforts are ongoing to capture 1 person.
4 DEFENDANTS HAD BEEN RELEASED
The defendants, for whom the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office requested up to 16.5 years in prison, appeared before the judge on February 9. Five defendants, four of whom are being tried in detention, are being prosecuted for "sexual harassment against a child" and "sexual exploitation of a child by means of harassment." The court had decided to release the detained defendants, considering the time they had spent in prison and the current state of evidence. In the interim decision, it was emphasized that there was no suspicion of flight on the part of the defendants, and the next hearing was scheduled for May 15.
WHAT HAD HAPPENED?
The TBMM General Secretariat denied the allegations that "no action was taken regarding the harassment claims" and initiated an administrative investigation related to the incident.
In the indictment, it was stated that an investigation was initiated based on the claim that four interns, who were under 18 at the time of the incident and had applied to the Ankara Provincial Police Department's Child Branch, were harassed by H.İ.G., D.U., İ.B., R.Ç., and R.S., who worked in the Assembly cafeteria.
The indictment noted that R.Ç. was released under judicial control, while the other suspects were arrested.
It was stated that in their statements, the interns reported that some defendants established prolonged contact under the pretext of shaking hands both inside and outside the workplace and touched various parts of their bodies.
The indictment expressed that these actions constituted the crime of 'sexual exploitation of a child at the level of harassment.'
The interns stated that the defendants tried to be alone with them and asked to address them by their names.
The indictment also included screenshots of WhatsApp messages submitted by the interns to the file.
As a result of the examination, it was determined that the messages sent from the defendants' lines contained sexual content directed at the interns, and that the messages were continuous.