Murder File Returned to its Origin after 18 Years

The Malatya Public Prosecutor's Office decided to close the investigation into the murder of former People's Labor Party (HEP) chairman Vedat Aydın due to "lack of jurisdiction". They sent the file back to Diyarbakır, referring to the fact that this is the place where the incident began.

On 5 July 1991 a group of armed people, identifying themselves as policemen, took Aydın from his house to "take his statement". 2 days later Aydın's body was found under a bridge in the Maden district of the city of Elazığ. His body showed signs of torture.

According to the website of CNN Turk, the Diyarbakır Public Prosecutor's office handed the file of the Aydın murder to a specially authorized prosecutor who conducted an investigation concerning cases with unknown suspects related to the case. Apparently, two years later the file returned when the statute of limitation ran out.

Proscutor's office sways file back to Diyarbakır

Aydın's body was found about 100 meters beyond the city boundaries of Dıyarbakır, in a place belonging to the city of Elazığ. Thus the investigation is carried out by the Malatya Republic Prosecutor's Office, a neighbor city of Diyarbakır.

The file which was returned to Diyarbakır also contains the accounts of Vedat Aydın's wife Şürkran Aydın. In her statement she recalls a group of people, introducing themselves as policemen, equipped with weapons and radios, coming to Aydın's home at night and taking her husband Vedat.

Aygan to be interrogated about Aydın murder

Some time ago the Diyarbakır Public Prosecutor's Office prepared questions regarding almost 70 cases with unknown suspects to be forwarded to Abkulkadir Aygan, former member of the clandestine and illegal Turkish gendarmerie intelligence unit (JİTEM) and confessed member of the militant Kurdish Worker's Party (PKK) who is asked to be extracted from Sweden.

The file has been sent to the Swedish Ministry of Justice. Besides questions regarding the Vedat Aydın murder it also contains questions about the murder of writer Musa Anter. (EÖ/VK)