Çevik Bir Arrested

Retired General Çevik Bir who was taken into custody in the scope of Feb. 28 investigation conducted by specially authorized Ankara Republic Deputy Public Prosecutor, is arrested.

Specially authorized public prosecutors demanded the arrest of 9 out of 12 people and sent them to Ankara 11. High Criminal Court; 9 people were arrested and sent to Sincan Prison while 3 others were released.

31 retired soldiers including the retired General Cevik Bir (General Staff 2. President of that period) were taken into custody on April 12, Thursday under the Feb.28 Investigation. Nine of them were arrested by the court after the prosecutor's interrogation on April 14, Saturday and seven of them were released. The prosecution interrogation of these 12 people ended by midnight and according to the information coming from the news portals, 9 of these 12 people are arrested on April 16, 2012 due to the "facts showing the presence of a strong suspicion of a crime."

The names of the prisoners are as follows: Retired General Cevik Bir, retired Brigadier Ünal Akbulut, retired Senior Colonel Serdar Çelebi, retired Colonels Yüksel Sönmez, Yahya Cem Özarslan, Ruşen Bozkurt, Oğuz Kalelioğlu, Cengiz Çetinkaya and Alican Türk.

Retired Senior Colonel Ümit Şahintürk and retired Master Sergeants Necdet Batıran and Hamza Özaltun were released by the court pending a trial although the prosecutors demanded their arrest.(EKN)