Former Dink murder case judge detained

By Emre Sacli

MANISA, Turkey (AA) – The judge in the murder trial of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink was taken into custody in the western province of Manisa Friday in connection with a probe of Dink’s 2007 assassination, according to security sources speaking on condition of anonymity due to restrictions on speaking with the media.

Rustem Eryilmaz, former president of the Istanbul 14th High Criminal Court, which handled the Dink murder trial, had been wanted since July 19 for being a member of the Fetullah Terrorist Organization or FETO, the group blamed for the July 15 defeated coup.

Dink was murdered in broad daylight outside his office in Istanbul on Jan. 19, 2007. A founder of bilingual Turkish-Armenian weekly Agos, he was considered one of the most prominent Armenian voices in Turkey.

Ogun Samast, age 17 at the time of the killing, claimed he murdered Dink for "insulting Turkishness" and was jailed in 2011 for 23 years.

Since then, several prosecutors have become involved in the investigation, believing Samast was not the only person involved in the killing.

In April 2007, Istanbul prosecutors Selim Berna Altay and Fikret Secen prepared an indictment of over 18 suspects, including Samast.

In 2012, Eryilmaz acquitted the other suspects, saying there was not enough evidence indicating formation of a criminal organization.

In July 2014, Turkey's Constitutional Court ruled the murder case had been an "ineffective investigation".

Last December, another indictment was filed calling for the prosecution of 26 former police officers on charges of establishing an armed organization and dereliction of duty.

*Hatice Kesgin contributed to this story.