13 suspects whose procedures at the police station had been completed in the “fund crisis” investigation conducted by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office were referred to the courthouse. The prosecution sought pretrial detention for 8 suspects, house arrest for 4 suspects and judicial control measures for 1 suspect. It was reported that a total of 61 people remained in detention while the police procedures for the other suspects continued as part of the investigation.
Why it matters
The differing requests for measures during the referral process show that the same legal approach was not applied to all suspects in the investigation file. While this points to a process in which the judicial authorities are conducting separate assessments for each individual, it also leaves open the question of the grounds on which the decisions are being shaped. The expanding scope of the investigation makes it necessary to monitor the status of those whose police procedures have not been completed; the total number of detainees shows that the case is not limited to a single wave of referrals. The critical stage now is how the court will rule on the prosecution’s requests and how the ongoing procedures will affect the course of the investigation.