FETO had earlier plan to kill Russian envoy: Prosecutor

By Tanju Ozkaya and Baris Kilic

ANKARA

An indictment on the assassination of Russia’s ambassador to Ankara on Friday revealed an earlier attempt of the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) -- group behind 2016’s defeated coup attempt -- to murder the envoy.

Andrey Karlov was assassinated at an art gallery in the Turkish capital on Dec. 19, by Mevlut Mert Altintas, an off-duty police officer linked to FETO who was shot dead by police during a standoff.

Turkish prosecutors have completed the investigation into the incident on Friday and sent an indictment to an Ankara court.

Twenty-eight suspects, including FETO leader Gulen, were indicted by the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office.

The indictment emphasized that the murder was committed by FETO to confront Moscow and Ankara, ahead of the defeated deadly coup attempt July 15, 2016, and to create a chaotic environment in Turkey.

It noted that the terror group planned another assassination about six months before the murder.

According to the indictment, Russian envoy Karlov was among the invitees of a June 27, 2016 iftar (fast-breaking dinner) program for ambassadors.

Altintas was going to sneak into the premises -- where the ruling Justice and Development (AK) Party had scheduled the dinner -- disguised as a security police officer upon the assassination instructions from FETO.

The indictment said in order to avoid suspicion, Altintas was going to use a collar badge worn by the staff of the Prime Ministry, but the assassination attempt failed as Karlov was abroad on that day.

The FETO and its U.S.-based leader Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016, which left 251 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.

Ankara also accuses FETO of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police, and judiciary.