Prosecutor Sarıkaya Dismissed due to "Misconduct of Office"

Istanbul Special Authority Public Prosecutor Sadrettin Sarıkaya was deposed from the KCK probe without any investigation after he had summoned members of the National Intelligence Agency (MİT) to take their statements. Sarıkaya was in charge of the investigation into the Union of Kurdish Communities (KCK). The KCK is a structure founded by Abdullah Öcalan, imprisoned leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), as the intent to organize the Kurdish people.

Prosecutor Sarıkaya had called MİT undersecretary Hakan Fidan, MİT Deputy Undersecretary Afet Güneş, former MİT Undersecretary Emre Taner and two other MİT officers to give their statements on 8 February.

Special Authority Istanbul Public Deputy Chief Prosecutor Fikret Seçen appointed Special Authority Prosecutors İbrahim Işık and Adem Özcan to replace Prosecutor Sarıkaya in the KCK investigation. They are going to continue the investigation together with Special Authority Prosecutor Bilal Bayraktar.

Reason for Dismissal: Hiding information from his superior

Istanbul Public Chief Prosecutor Turan Çolakkadı announced the reasons for Sarıkaya's dismissal in the nation-wide Sabah daily on Sunday (12 February): "violation of the confidentiality of an investigation" and "hiding information from a superior".

Çolakkadı said during the first days of the crisis that he had not been informed about the summons of Fidan and the former MİT executives.

Sarıkaya had released arrest warrants about former MİT Undersecretary Taner, former Deputy Undersecretary Güneş and MİT Deputy Undersecretaries Yaşar Yıldırım and Hüseyin Kuzuoğlu. Prosecutor Sarıkaya also wrote a directive to the Ankara Special Authority Public Prosecution to take the statement of MİT Undersecretary Findan as a suspect.

As put forward by Çolakkadı, Sarıkaya was deposed from office in accordance with the "Special Authority Public Prosecution Work Regulations".

In summary, Çolakkadı announced:

* The dismissal of Prosecutor Sadrettin Sarıkaya happened within my knowledge and with my approval.

* The actual reason for the decision taken by Deputy Chief Prosecutor Fikret Seçen was to be able to ensure the confidentiality of the ongoing investigation and to avoid a leakage to the press. The necessary measures to ensure the security of the probe had not been taken.

* The second reason was hiding information on the developments of the investigation from the deputy chief prosecutor who had provided him with special authority status. In fact, it was the deputy chief prosecutor who handed the file to him. Hiding information from this person is contrary to the work regulations. This is misconduct of office.

*All deputy chief prosecutors and prosecutors are compelled to comply with these regulations.

* In a sense, these regulations are our constitution. In case of a breach of its provisions, the deputy chief prosecutor can use his discretionary power without the decision of the Supreme Council of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK); and that is what he did. He took the investigation away from Sarıkaya and allocated it to somebody else.

* The HSYK announced on Saturday (11 February) that they were not involved in any proceedings regarding the prosecutors in charge of the investigation.

Arrest warrants will be reviewed

It was reported that Prosecutor Işık from the Arrest Office and Prosecutor Özcan, trial prosecutor of the 10^th High Criminal Court, who are in charge of the probe now will review the arrest warrants released about the MİT members by Prosecutor Sarıkaya.

Sarıkaya learnt about his dismissal from the file when he was at court for the interrogation of a suspect in the scope of another probe. In a statement made to the Habertürk newspaper he said, "It was the discretionary power of the chief prosecutor. We did our duty".

Public Prosecutor Işık met Sarıkaya at the Beşiktaş (Istanbul) Courthouse on Saturday night in order to take over the according duty. The meeting took about one hour. After handing over the investigation file, Sarıkaya left the courthouse without giving any statement to the journalists. (NV/HK/VK)