Turkish courts slap prison sentences on 22 FETO members

By Fatih Beyaz and Serdar Acil

ANKARA / ESKISEHIR, Turkey

Turkish courts convicted 22 Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) members, judicial sources said on Wednesday.

In capital Ankara, a former Justice Ministry official accused of being an imam of the terror group was sentenced to eight years in prison for being a member of an armed terrorist organization. The convict used ByLock, an encrypted cellphone app used by FETO members during and prior to the 2016 attempted coup.

A court in the central province of Eskisehir convicted 21 people in an investigation on the terror organization’s infiltration of the gendarmerie forces.

Three convicts sentenced to between four and six years in prison were released due to the time they spent in detention. The remaining convicts received sentences of between three and six years in prison.

FETO and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah 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.

By Fatih Beyaz and Serdar Acil

ANKARA / ESKISEHIR, Turkey

Turkish courts convicted 22 Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO) members, judicial sources said on Wednesday.

A court in the central province of Eskisehir convicted 21 people in an investigation on the terror organization’s infiltration of the gendarmerie forces.

FETO and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah 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.