Court Issues Prison Sentence Despite No Evidence Except Witness Claim

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Based on statements by a self-proclaimed "informant" who testified in numerous political trials, a member of the main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP) has been sentenced to 23 years and 9 months in prison.

İ.Ö., who claims to have been an informant since the age of 10, is currently behind bars for "armed looting."

In a petition he submitted to the police in 2008, he had said he wanted to give a statement about an assassination plan. In his statement afterward, he mentioned the name of CHP member Nazım Şafak Korkmaz.

Years after the statement, a lawsuit was filed against Korkmaz and he was given a prison term. The court of appeal upheld the verdict on November 19, 2019.

Korkmaz was occupied with textile work in Kağıthane, İstanbul, and said he was planning to get married before he was detained on April 9, 2017. He has been behind bars since then and he is currently residing at Kırklareli Prison in northwestern Turkey.

Police: He has no relation with an illegal organization

After an investigation was launched against him in 2017, Korkmaz was charged with "attempting to overthrow the constitutional order." He stood trial at İstanbul 37th Heavy Penal Court.

Shortly after the lawsuit was filed, reports including İ.Ö.'s statements and the allegations in the indictment were published in pro-government media.

In a report written by the Security Directorate's Intelligence Branch stated that Korkmaz has no relation with an illegal organization.

"There is not even a single photograph'

Ercan Özer, the uncle of Korkmaz, told bianet that "He weighed 138 kilograms when he went to prison, now he weighs 78 kilograms. Prison conditions are very bad."

"Before this, my nephew had not been detained even once throughout his life. There is not even a single photograph of him that show he attended the demonstrations mentioned in the indictment. Since our grandfather, we have been members of the CHP. my other nephews and nieces are also members of the CHP. We do politics this way. Nazım was detained in his home where he had been living for years. He has been imprisoned for years due to a single person's statement."

Contradictory statements

In the final hearing of his trial on May 30, 2019, Korkmaz said in his statement as to the accusations that "Only İ.Ö. has a statement about me. This person has psychological problems, has many finalized sentences. His statements are also contradictory. For example, in one of his statements, he said it was 22.00 at the time of the incident. But according to the minutes in the case file, it was 18.00.

"In another statement, he said the incident happened in late 2006, and in another statement, he said it happened in early 2007. This case file is a script, it is fiction. There is nothing against me except slanders by someone who is not sane.

"The witnesses who were heard as part of the case, intelligence reports sent by the police, and prosecutor reports show that I do not have any relation with any organization."

His lawyers also stated that there was no evidence against him except a witness statement. Yet Kormaz was given a prison term (AS/VK).