Plainclothes police keep an eye on Tursun case
Güncelleme Tarihi:
Daily News with wires
Oluşturulma Tarihi: Ocak 21, 2009 00:00
ISTANBUL - During the trial for Baran Tursun, who was shot dead by a police officer, when the judge asked if any police in civilian clothes were present in the courtroom, six policemen stood up. Their presence has raised questions about if they are on official duty to watch the case or not, Anatolia news agency reported.
Aysu Koç, the lawyer of Tursun family, demanded the court identify any police officers in civilian clothes present in the courthouse, despite Karşıyaka Police Department’s contrary statement saying that they had not assigned any police officers in civilian clothes or in uniform to be present at Tursun’s trials. The judge asked police officers to stand up if they were in the courtroom. Six officers stood up. Koç said the aims of these police officers should be disclosed.
Tursun, 20, was shot dead while driving his car in the Aegean province of İzmir last year. Police alleged that he disobeyed their calls to stop. Oral Emre Atar, the police officer who is alleged to have shot Tursun, was not present at the trial. Mehmet Tursun, the father of Baran, and lawyers participated in the trial.
The court in an interlocutory decision concluded to merge the files of Atar and 10 other police officers, who are also being judged for hiding evidence of the case. The next trial is postponed to March 6, as the forensic report about the incident was not ready yet. Tursun’s father said they appreciated the decision to merge the files.
"They wanted to overshadow the case but they could not succeed," Tursun’s father said. Tolga Yurdakul, Atar’s lawyer, said merging the files would not make any difference for his client’s situation.
Şeyhmuz Er, the driver of the tow truck, and his assistant Ahmet Yıldıray, who helped move Tursun’s jeep after the crash, testified in court as well. They went to the place of the incident after hearing a radio announcement of a car accident with injuries, they said, adding that they towed the jeep by order of the police.
Police followed Tursun’s car after he allegedly did not obey calls to stop and then hit trees and transmission towers. Tursun was hospitalized at the Aegean University Hospital and a bullet wound was found at the back of his neck. Atar, who allegedly fired warning shots, was arrested and then released after the first trial.
Tursun, 20, was shot dead while driving his car in the Aegean province of İzmir last year. Police alleged that he disobeyed their calls to stop. Oral Emre Atar, the police officer who is alleged to have shot Tursun, was not present at the trial. Mehmet Tursun, the father of Baran, and lawyers participated in the trial.
The court in an interlocutory decision concluded to merge the files of Atar and 10 other police officers, who are also being judged for hiding evidence of the case. The next trial is postponed to March 6, as the forensic report about the incident was not ready yet. Tursun’s father said they appreciated the decision to merge the files.
"They wanted to overshadow the case but they could not succeed," Tursun’s father said. Tolga Yurdakul, Atar’s lawyer, said merging the files would not make any difference for his client’s situation.
Şeyhmuz Er, the driver of the tow truck, and his assistant Ahmet Yıldıray, who helped move Tursun’s jeep after the crash, testified in court as well. They went to the place of the incident after hearing a radio announcement of a car accident with injuries, they said, adding that they towed the jeep by order of the police.
Police followed Tursun’s car after he allegedly did not obey calls to stop and then hit trees and transmission towers. Tursun was hospitalized at the Aegean University Hospital and a bullet wound was found at the back of his neck. Atar, who allegedly fired warning shots, was arrested and then released after the first trial.