Ergenekon Case: 7th Indictment Submitted

The indictment concerning the "Action Plan against Reactionary Forces" is ready to be presented to court. It was prepared by Istanbul Public Deputy Chief Prosecutor Turan Çolakkadı. The "Action Plan against Reactionary Forces" was published by Taraf newspaper in June 2009 and is seen in the context of the Ergenekon case. The document showed alleged plans to discredit the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and the religious movement led by Fethullah Gülen.

This is the 7^th indictment related to the so-called Ergenekon Case, the case of the clandestine ultra-national Ergenekon organisation nested within the state and the military. The organization is charged with plotting to overthrow the government and to create chaos in the country with murders and attacks.

Dalan and Çiçek face life sentences

Provided that the court will approve the indictment, İSTEK Foundation President Bedrettin Dalan is seen as the prime suspect. An arrest warrant was issued for Dalan the previous day. Suspect no. 2 is Naval Staff Colonel Dursun Çiçek, who allegedly signed the action plan. National Intelligence Agency (MIT) employee Özel Yılmaz is the third main suspect since he is supposed to have warned Dalan to escape.

The indictment names a total of seven suspects as defendants. It proposes life sentences for Vakıf Foundation President Dalan and Colonel Çiçek on the grounds of the "attempt to abolish the government of the Turkish Republic or to prevent it from fulfilling its duty".

Dalan wanted by the police for almost 1.5 years

In the course of the 10^th wave of operations as part of the Ergenekon investigation on 6 January 2009, Dalan's son Barış Dalan, Dalan's Private Executive Secretary İlhami Ümit Handan and Dalan's driver Çoşkun Umur were arrested.

Barış Dalan, Handan and Umur were interrogated by the prosecution and released subsequently. It turned out that Bedrettin Dalan had escaped to the USA.

On 21 April 2009, a huge weapons cache was found on a piece of land in Poyrazköy (Anatolian side of Istanbul) belonging to the İSTEK Foundation. The indictment on the 'Poyrazköy Case' states that "a team was established upon the directive of retired Colonel Levent Göktaş, detained defendant of the Ergenekon case. This team buried explosives and weapons that were intended to be used in certain actions on a piece of land belonging to Bedrettin Dalan. Dalan was informed about the materials to be buried".

7^th indictment in Ergenekon case

Six indictments have been prepared and accepted by courts until today. The first three indictments are related to the structure of the clandestine Ergenekon organization. The following indictments are concerned with the ammunition found on the premises of İSTEK Foundation in Poyrazköy and with the so-called "Cage Action Plan". This plan includes alleged assassination plots and was confiscated among the belongings of retired Colonel Levent Bektaş, detained defendant in the scope of the Ergenekon investigation.

Apart from the mentioned defendants, the indictments also proposed investigations regarding people who had been previously involved, who had been arrested and released later on or who have arrest warrants issued. Some of these people will be included in the 7^th indictment as it was prepared by the Ergenekon prosecutors. (BB/VK)