New footage on Metin Lokumcu murder: Who is the plainclothes person?

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Over 10 years ago, on May 31, 2011, the police intervened in a protest demonstration in Artvin's Hopa in the Black Sea region before the rally of the then Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. Affected by the pepper gas, Metin Lokumcu had a heart attack and lost his life at the hospital.

A new video footage captured on the day when Lokumcu lost his life as a result of the chemical gases used by the police has surfaced.

In the new video shared on the "Metin Lokumcu Case" Twitter account, a plainclothes person is seen to be saying, "Calm down, get in a troop line, stay in a way to show our strength." He is also seen to be ordering the police to "aim" and showing them how to fire tear gas cartridges.

Posting the video on their social media account, the ones who follow the Metin Lokumcu Case have asked, "Who is the plainclothes person seen in the video, using gas, showing [the police] how to use it and giving instructions? Does he have the authority to use gas or give orders?"

They have also referred to the related circular of the Directorate General of Security: "The 'Essentials of OC Gas Spray Use' Circular of the Directorate General of Security, Head of Security Department: 'The OC tear gas spray will only be used by the authorized personnel who have received the 'Use of Tear Gas and Gas Masks Course' and 'Training on Tear Gas Use'."

Metin Lokumcu'nun kimyasal gaz sonucu hayatını kaybettiği 31 Mayıs 2011'den önemli görüntüler:

Sivil giyimli kişi: Sakin olun, birlik düzeninizi alın, gücümüzü gösterecek şekilde durun.

Aynı kişi, gaz fişeğinin nasıl atılacağını göstererek:Hedef al #MetinLokumcuAdaletBekliyor pic.twitter.com/Ra3YimuPM7

— Metin Lokumcu Davası (@MetinLokumcuDv) December 7, 2021

What happened?

Retired teacher Metin Lokumcu lost his life after having a heart attack as he was affected by the pepper gas used by the police and the blows he received during the incidents that occured during and after the rally of the then PM Recep Tayyip Erdoğan in Hopa, Artvin on May 31, 2011.

On the day of the incident, Lokumcu stood in front of the police with his hands behind his back, calling out to the police, "Come on, take me and save the country." This picture was then reported in the press.

70 people were detained as part of the investigation into the incidents and 16 of the detained were arrested. These persons were released afterwards.

Following Lokumcu's death, the then Prime Minister Erdoğan talked about him at the publicity meeting of the "Turkey is Ready, Target is 2023" project in İstanbul. "And, in the meantime, one of them had a heart attack... I don't know his identity... But I don't feel the need to dwell on it... He has died of a heart attack," said Erdoğan about Lokumcu.

Case transferred to heavy penal court

Upon the request of the local court in Hopa, the 5th Penal Chamber of the Court of Cassation gave a decision on December 21, 2020 and ruled that the trial over the death of Metin Lokumcu should be transferred to the Trabzon Penal Court of First Instance "for security reasons."

In the justification of this decision, the Court of Cassation referred to the "possibility that social incidents and provocation might arise."

The 5th Penal Chamber of the Court of Cassation transferred the case to Trabzon as it came to the conclusions that "social incidents might erupt and the parties might face serious threats even when security measures were taken, which might lead to a failure to hold the trial in an orderly manner and pose a clear and imminent danger to public security."

At the hearing in June 2021, the Trabzon 2nd Penal Court of First Instance gave a decision of lack of jurisdiction. The police officers who were on trial over the death of Lokumcu appealed against this decision foreseeing the case to be held by a heavy penal court. With their appeals rejected, the trial is now held at the Trabzon 2nd Heavy Penal Court. (KÖ/SD)