Turkish intel agency report in unsolved murders case 'consist of presuppositions'

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A report prepared by Turkey's National Intelligence Agency (MİT) in a case into unsolved murders that were committed in 1990s consist of presuppositions, a court said, adding that the report was not sufficient to give sentences.

The Ankara First Heavy Penal Court released its justified decision on ruling for the acquittal of 19 suspects, including former Interior Minister Mehmet Ağar, in the case into 18 unsolved murders, deeming all reports by MİT, parliament, ministries and commissions "insufficient" to convict the suspects.

The reports are made up of "speculations and estimations," the court said, daily Cumhuriyet reported on Jan. 20.

The 1990s were marked by unsolved murders in Turkey, with many still searching for the perpetrators.

Ağar, who also served as the justice minister and police chief, is one of the shadiest figures in Turkish politics. He was tried over his links to the Susurluk car accident, which took place in the town of Susurluk in the western province of Balıkesir in 1996.

The car accident brought the close relationship between the government, security forces and organized crime to the public’s attention.

Those acquitted by the Ankara First Heavy Penal Court in the hearing on Dec. 13, 2019 include Ağar, former Special Operations head İbrahim Şahin, former MİT administrator Mehmet Korkut Eken, "Yeşil" code-named Mahmut Yıldırım and special forces police officers.

"When the places that the murders were committed are examined, it was seen that they were carried out by person or persons who were confident of not getting caught by security forces," the court said in its justified decision.

"There is no evidence that Ağar, Şahin and Eken were instigators in the murder of Ömer Lütfü Topal," it said, adding that the testimonies of former special operations police officer Ayhan Çarkın, who had publicly confessed to his involvement in extrajudicial killings, are contradictory.