A police officer charged with being a member of the Fethullah Terrorist Organization (FETÖ*) has been acquitted by the court, Yeniduzen reports.
The verdict against Çetin Şahmaran, who was on trial for being a member of the Fethullah Terrorist Organisation (FETÖ), was that he was acquitted on the grounds that no testimony was presented regarding his participation in illegal activities.
Çetin Şahmaran was tried for the crimes of ‘being a member of a terrorist organisation, possessing banned documents and books regarding the terrorist organisation, encouraging the payment of dues for the FETÖ-PYD Organisation’.
Large amounts of cash and many organisational documents were seized from Şahmaran’s house.
Çetin Şahmaran, who is alleged to be the number two imam in the police ranks and who has been under technical surveillance by the police for a long time, was put on trial for being a member of the Fethullah Terrorist Organization (FETÖ) and collecting donations for the organisation.
During the raid on Şahmaran’s house in Nicosia, £20,600, 5,000 US dollars, 3,000 Euros, in cash, numerous electronic items, mobile phones and many documents were found.
The court ruled that Caner Şahmaran was acquitted after the FETÖ-PYD was declared an illegal terrorist organisation on July 15, 2016, as there was no evidence of the organisation’s involvement in illegal activities.
In 2019, Turkish Cypriot authorities intensified efforts to go after police staff with alleged ties to the Fethullah Gulen Organisation (FETÖ), classified as a terrorist group that was behind an unsuccessful coup attempt in Turkey back in 2016.
He was arrested again in June 2020. Meanwhile, dozens of people in Turkey were arrested on similar charges.
*Turkey accuses FETÖ of trying to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police and judiciary.
Ankara also says self-exiled Turkish Islamic scholar Fethullah Gulen who lives in the US, was behind the failed coup against President Tayyip Erdogan. Gulen has consistently denied the charges. Thousands of people have fled Turkey following the attempted coup in July 2016, with a crackdown on supporters of the Gulen movement continuing to take place, including in North Cyprus. [Ed.]
