ISTANBUL
An Istanbul prosecutor has asked for the arrest of three former prosecutors who were dismissed for misconduct over their alleged involvement in a 2013 anti-graft probe targeting senior government officials.
Bakirkoy Chief Public Prosecutor's office asked Bakirkoy 2nd High Criminal Court to issue arrest warrants for former prosecutors Zekeriya Oz, Celal Kara, and Mehmet Yuzgec, who are accused of "forming an organization to commit crime" and "attempting to overthrow the government by use of force".
In December, 2014, the three prosecutors were suspended in an investigation into their alleged role in the anti-graft probe against several high-profile figures, including the sons of three former government ministers and leading Turkish businessmen.
The government had denounced the probe as a "dirty plot" constructed by the U.S.-based preacher Fethullah Gulen’s movement and his alleged "parallel state".
The three were dismissed in May, 2015 in accordance with Article 69 of the Judges and Prosecutors' Law No. 2802, which states that judges and prosecutors would be dismissed from duty if their acts damaged the honor of their profession, and of the reputation of their public post.
The parallel state refers to a purported group of Turkish bureaucrats and senior officials embedded in the country's institutions, including the judiciary and police, who are allegedly trying to undermine the Turkish government.
