British court releases FETO coup bid suspect on bail

A fugitive Turkish businessman Hamdi Akin Ipek who was arrested on May 23 in London has been released on bail, according to the U.K.'s Crown Prosecution Service.

Ipek, the former head of Koza Ipek Holding with links to Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), was arrested at Turkey's demand. He appeared in the Westminster Magistrate Court in May and was granted bail against a sum of £50,000 ($64,000).

He has not been kept under house arrest, but he cannot leave the country. His passports have been surrendered and he has to be reachable by phone 24/7.

A hearing for his extradition will take place in September at the same court.

The British Home Office also confirmed the reports.

Releasing suspects on bail in the U.K. is a common practice. The defendants, who are released on this condition, have to spend every night at one address during the trial.

Ipek, accused of attempting to overthrow Turkey's government and violating the Constitution, may face up to two aggravated life sentences.

He is also facing 132 years in prison for setting up an armed terror group, military and political espionage, forging documents, and laundering money.

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.