Top FETO figures get jail terms in major plotting case

An Istanbul court on Friday sentenced several top figures of the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), including former chiefs of police and ex-chairman of a FETO-linked television network, up to 31.5 years in prison for plotting against a publishing group in 2009.

The 14th High Criminal Court issued its final verdict in the 'Tahşiyeciler' case, handing down a jail sentence of 31 years and six months to Hidayet Karaca, the former chairman of Samanyolu TV (STV), for having a leadership role in an armed terrorist organization, defamation and forgery of official documents.

The court also sentenced ex-police intelligence chief Ali Fuat Yılmazer to 16 years and 6 months in jail for being a member of an armed terrorist group, and defamation.

The Istanbul court also found three former chiefs of police, Yurt Atayün, Ömer Köse and Tufan Ergüder, guilty of being members of an armed terrorist organization, defamation and forgery of official documents and sentenced them to 25 years each.

Judges decided to try FETO leader Fetullah Gulen, who has been residing in the U.S., and fugitive former chief of police, Mutlu Ekizoğlu separately as the court has not received their testimonies.

Gulen, former editor-in-chief of FETO-linked Zaman newspaper, Ekrem Dumanlı, and 31 other suspects -- 23 currently in custody -- were accused of plotting against the Tahşiyeciler group, according to an indictment filed in 2015.

The indictment was filed following a probe into a 2011 complaint filed by Mehmet Nuri Turan, founder of the Istanbul-based Tahşiye publishing house, which was targeted by Fetullah Gulen and FETO-linked media outlets.

The name of the group, which is now known as Tahşiyeciler, was allegedly first coined by Fetullah Gulen in a speech he gave on Apr. 6, 2009 where he hinted at the existence of a terrorist organization called Tahşiye.

The FETO leader had alleged that Tahşiye publishing house and its "Tahşiyeciler" group had links with extremist organizations.

Following the first mention of the group, FETO-linked media outlets began covering the subject, supporting the belief that there was such an organization engaged in terrorism.

The group was also allegedly defamed as a shadowy organization in the "One Turkey" TV series that used to be aired on STV, which was closed by the government following the defeated coup attempt last year.

Ali Fuat Yılmazer had also submitted a report in 2009 which alleged that Tahşiyeciler supported extremist groups like al-Qaeda because of which the group was systematically targeted.