Organized versus Individual Crime...

The Istanbul 10^th High Criminal Court decided for a lack of jurisdiction regarding the murder case of journalist Cihan Hayırsevener. Now, the Supreme Court of Appeals will have to deal with the trial. Journalist Hayırsevener from Bandırma (southern Marmara region) was killed after he had reported critically about the rival media group.

Hayırsevener, then General Publications Director of the Güney Marmara Yaşam newspaper ('Life in Southern Marmara') was killed on 18 December 2009. The trial started ten months later on 15 October 2010.

Court President Zafer Başkurt decided to merge the cases related to the journalist murder and another trial opened under charges of "establishing an illegal organization for profit", "membership of an illegal organization" and "corruption in public tenders". Başkurt also decreed to forward the file to the Supreme Court of Appeals 5^th Chamber to resolve the conflict of jurisdiction between the Istanbul court and the Bandırma High Criminal Court

According to the court, the charges pressed against the defendants do not apply to article 250 of the Criminal Procedural Code (CMK) but "should be evaluated individually. "

However, Article 250 (b) of the CMK obliges the court to consider "crimes committed by applying violence and threats in the scope of activities of an organization which was established with the aim to gain illegal economic profit".

A total of twelve defendants are tried, among them triggerman suspect Serkan Erakkuş, Ilk Haber newspaper publications director Engin Arıcan, Bandırma Deputy Mayor Talip Yıldız and İhsan Kuruoğlu, İlbey Kuruoğlu and Osman Kuruoğlu as members of the family who publishes the Ilk Haber newspaper.

The Istanbul court decreed to release defendants Kuruoğlu and Yıldız pending trial taking into account "the quality of crime, the status of evidence and the time spent in detention". Defendants Erakkuş, Kuruoğlu and Yılmaz will remain in detention.

Public Prosecutor Hüseyin Ayar prepared the indictment on 11 August. It read that journalist Hayırsevener was threatened by triggerman suspect Erakkuş before the murder. The indictment seeks life sentences for Erakkuş, İhsan Kuruoğlu, Ferdar Dündar and Kerem Yılmaz under article 82/1a of the Turkish Criminal Law (TCK) on "premeditated homicide". Kuruoğlu is said to have sent a death threat to Hayırsevener from prison and apparently instructed his punishment. Dündar allegedly conveyed his instructions in line with the activities of the organization even though he was serving as his lawyer. Yılmaz is believed to have been involved into the attack.

The plaintiff party was concerned about certain information in the case file. On 15 February, the Bandırma Magistrate Criminal Court decided for a declaratory decree on the communication. It turned out that lawyer Freda Dündar informed a person close to the Kuruoğlu family that the file had been transferred to the Istanbul 10^th High Criminal Court. As a result, it was confirmed that Dündar said, "This is good of course. The related court president is our Zafer from Erdek. [...] Well, the court president is not a stranger". (EÖ/VK)