The first hearing in the case against former Habertürk TV Editor-in-Chief Mehmet Akif Ersoy, who is being tried on charges of “establishing and managing a criminal organization,” “11 counts of aggravated sexual assault,” “trafficking or supplying drugs or stimulants,” and “facilitating the use of narcotics,” began at the Istanbul 19th High Criminal Court. The indictment against Ersoy, who was arrested on December 11 last year, and a total of 7 people was submitted to the court on May 20 and returned to the prosecutor’s office before being redrafted and accepted. A prison sentence of between 11 years and 3 months and 286 years and 2 months was sought for Ersoy. The hearing was closed to the press and the public. Veyis Ateş, who was released on September 7, appeared as a witness.
Why it matters
The fact that the case involves multiple defendants means the court will assess not only the allegations against Mehmet Akif Ersoy but also the acts allegedly linked to the other individuals. The indictment’s being returned to the prosecutor’s office after it was submitted to the court, then redrafted and accepted, indicates that the proceedings underwent an additional review at the procedural level. The closed-door hearing makes the court’s statements in the coming stages more important, as the public cannot directly follow the evidence and the parties’ statements at this stage. Veyis Ateş’s being heard as a witness leaves open the question of how his testimony will be linked to the other evidence in the case file and how much weight the court will give it.