Torture in Police Custody - Lawyer Threatened

Torture victim Sami Tunca is going to file a criminal complaint about the police officers who tortured him while he was in police custody. Tunca announced his decision to take legal action in a press conference held at the Human Rights Association (İHD) Istanbul Branch together with his lawyer Sevinç Sarıkaya.

On 26 June, Tunca was taken into police custody together with three young women from the United Struggle Platform in the Sarıgazı district of Istanbul. The platform members had distributed leaflets with the call to remember the Sivas massacre. Ezgi Keser, Özge Keser and Esra Göner, three women in their early 20s, were dragged by their hair. Local shopkeepers protested against the harsh measures of the police. Thereupon, the police reportedly threw a gas bomb and shot into the air.

Tunca reported that he was tortured by police officers before he was brought to the Yenidoğan Police Station and also at the police station. His lawyer was threatened by the police when he came to the police station to talk to his client.

Lawyer Sarıkaya also presented the police bullets allegedly collected from the scene of the incident on the same day. He said, "The police officers are aware of what they did (...). They think they can do whatever they want because they do not know the legal procedures very well".

Tunca summarized his experiences as follows:

"We installed an information booth in the centre of Sarıgazi on 26 June to announce a commemoration ceremony for the Sivas massacre. The police wanted to check our IDs. After I gave them my ID the police said that I am wanted. I told them that I had been acquitted of the charges on subject but they beat me and forced me to enter a car".

"The people and shopkeepers in Sarıgazı protested and a conflict developed. The police threw tear gas at the shopkeepers and shot into the air".

"After having been taken into custody, two police officers brought me to a secluded place and beat me. From there I was taken to the police station where they brought me to a room and beat me again. They crashed a chair on my back. They held my head and smashed it to the floor".

Lawyer Sarıkaya said that he arrived at the Yenidoğan Police Station one hour after his client was taken into custody at about 7.30 pm. There he saw three young women who were holding their heads because they had been dragged roughly by their hair.

When he was eventually allowed to see his client, Tunca was not able to stand on his feet. Sarıkaya recalled that Tunca was handcuffed and under surveillance until his arrival.

"We were taken to the room Tunca was tortured in. I saw the broken chair and drops of blood on the floor. The prosecutor's office had not been informed yet when I called at 9.00 pm. The police informed the prosecutor's office at 10.55 pm".

While lawyer Sarıkaya was taking care of the three women, Tunca was brought to hospital without informing his lawyer. Sarıkaya finally managed to find out where his client had been taken to.

"After I returned from hospital, the chief of the police station told me 'If you try a case, this is the treatment you will get'". After that, Sarıkaya was forced to leave the police station together with his client. Apparently, he was not allowed to see the hospital report.

Sarıkaya claimed that he was also threatened by a plainclothes superintendent in front of the police station. He was reportedly told, "Lawyers like you are his way. You will see when your day has come".

The lawyer announced to file a criminal complaint on the grounds of torture in the coming days. (ÇT/VK)