Torturers to pay for crime
Güncelleme Tarihi:
by Ali Daglar - Hurriyet
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Nisan 13, 2009 00:00
ISTANBUL - A torture victim has been awarded 250,000 Turkish Liras, with the money to be collected from the police officers accused of the crime in question.
The story began when the dormitory friends of a female student who went missing in 2002 were detained after the girl’s leg was discovered in the Beyoğlu neighborhood of Istanbul. Both the missing girl and her roommate, who was among the detained students, were the daughters of police officers. The seven detained students lodged a complaint after their release and accused the Organized Crime Bureau officers of torturing them.
The Interior Ministry launched an inquiry, which led to the dismissal from the force of Organized Crime Bureau Chief Adil Serdar Saçan and his deputy, Ahmet İhtiyaroğlu. Thirty-one other officers received various punishments.
According to newspaper reports last week, Saçan and İhtiyaroğlu were also officers who are alleged to have tortured Tuncay Güney, whose 2000 testimony is seen as the starting point of the Ergenekon investigation. Saçan has been arrested on charges of being a member of the alleged Ergenekon gang, which is accused of trying to topple the government.
In the allegations brought by the students, İhtiyaroğlu, six police officers and three doctors were charged by one court with torture, mistreatment and dereliction of duty. The doctors were accused of producing medical reports that said all seven students were healthy after undergoing torture. But an Istanbul court found all of the defendants not guilty because of a lack of evidence.
A torture victim has been awarded 250,000 Turkish Liras, with the money to be collected from the police officers accused of the crime in question.
The story began when the dormitory friends of a female student who went missing in 2002 were detained after the girl’s leg was discovered in the Beyoğlu neighborhood of Istanbul. Both the missing girl and her roommate, who was among the detained students, were the daughters of police officers. The seven detained students lodged a complaint after their release and accused the Organized Crime Bureau officers of torturing them.
The Interior Ministry launched an inquiry, which led to the dismissal from the force of Organized Crime Bureau Chief Adil Serdar Saçan and his deputy, Ahmet İhtiyaroğlu. Thirty-one other officers received various punishments.
According to newspaper reports last week, Saçan and İhtiyaroğlu were also officers who are alleged to have tortured Tuncay Güney, whose 2000 testimony is seen as the starting point of the Ergenekon investigation. Saçan has been arrested on charges of being a member of the alleged Ergenekon gang, which is accused of trying to topple the government.
In the allegations brought by the students, İhtiyaroğlu, six police officers and three doctors were charged by one court with torture, mistreatment and dereliction of duty. The doctors were accused of producing medical reports that said all seven students were healthy after undergoing torture. But an Istanbul court found all of the defendants not guilty because of a lack of evidence. The case is currently on appeal.
The missing girl’s roommate filed a compensation claim against the Interior Ministry, demanding 200,000 liras. A majority of the judges of the court decided March 30, 2005, to award the girl 100,000 liras, while the single dissenting judge said the full amount should be awarded instead.
The court also said that, according to the law governing public servants, compensation paid by the state for officials found guilty of certain crimes should be repaid by the officials themselves. So the original 100,000 liras in compensation, plus 150,000 liras in interest, should be collected from the police officers. The decision was approved by the country’s top administrative court, the Council of State, on Feb. 6, with the money paid to be collected from the police officers.
The girl who won the claim was 20 years old at the time. Istanbul University Forensic Science Department head Professor Şebnem Korur, who examined the girl, said there were obvious signs on her body that she had been tortured with electricity.
The Interior Ministry launched an inquiry, which led to the dismissal from the force of Organized Crime Bureau Chief Adil Serdar Saçan and his deputy, Ahmet İhtiyaroğlu. Thirty-one other officers received various punishments.
According to newspaper reports last week, Saçan and İhtiyaroğlu were also officers who are alleged to have tortured Tuncay Güney, whose 2000 testimony is seen as the starting point of the Ergenekon investigation. Saçan has been arrested on charges of being a member of the alleged Ergenekon gang, which is accused of trying to topple the government.
In the allegations brought by the students, İhtiyaroğlu, six police officers and three doctors were charged by one court with torture, mistreatment and dereliction of duty. The doctors were accused of producing medical reports that said all seven students were healthy after undergoing torture. But an Istanbul court found all of the defendants not guilty because of a lack of evidence.
A torture victim has been awarded 250,000 Turkish Liras, with the money to be collected from the police officers accused of the crime in question.
The story began when the dormitory friends of a female student who went missing in 2002 were detained after the girl’s leg was discovered in the Beyoğlu neighborhood of Istanbul. Both the missing girl and her roommate, who was among the detained students, were the daughters of police officers. The seven detained students lodged a complaint after their release and accused the Organized Crime Bureau officers of torturing them.
The Interior Ministry launched an inquiry, which led to the dismissal from the force of Organized Crime Bureau Chief Adil Serdar Saçan and his deputy, Ahmet İhtiyaroğlu. Thirty-one other officers received various punishments.
According to newspaper reports last week, Saçan and İhtiyaroğlu were also officers who are alleged to have tortured Tuncay Güney, whose 2000 testimony is seen as the starting point of the Ergenekon investigation. Saçan has been arrested on charges of being a member of the alleged Ergenekon gang, which is accused of trying to topple the government.
In the allegations brought by the students, İhtiyaroğlu, six police officers and three doctors were charged by one court with torture, mistreatment and dereliction of duty. The doctors were accused of producing medical reports that said all seven students were healthy after undergoing torture. But an Istanbul court found all of the defendants not guilty because of a lack of evidence. The case is currently on appeal.
The missing girl’s roommate filed a compensation claim against the Interior Ministry, demanding 200,000 liras. A majority of the judges of the court decided March 30, 2005, to award the girl 100,000 liras, while the single dissenting judge said the full amount should be awarded instead.
The court also said that, according to the law governing public servants, compensation paid by the state for officials found guilty of certain crimes should be repaid by the officials themselves. So the original 100,000 liras in compensation, plus 150,000 liras in interest, should be collected from the police officers. The decision was approved by the country’s top administrative court, the Council of State, on Feb. 6, with the money paid to be collected from the police officers.
The girl who won the claim was 20 years old at the time. Istanbul University Forensic Science Department head Professor Şebnem Korur, who examined the girl, said there were obvious signs on her body that she had been tortured with electricity.