An ex-military officer in Turkey who directed pilots lifting off from a now-infamous airbase in the deadly July 15 coup attempt by the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), received 79 aggravated life sentences.
HE WAS SENTENCED TO 3,901YEARS IN PRISON
In a trial last week of officers at the Akinci Airbase, which served as a headquarters for the failed 2016 attempt, the court in the capital Ankara on Thursday handed aggravated life sentences to several officers, including former Lt. Col. Hakan Karakus, and civilians who helped plot and carry it out.
Karakus — the son-in-law of former Air Force Commander Gen. Akin Ozturk who was a key figure in plotting the coup within the military — received 79 aggravated life sentences and sentenced to 3,901 years in prison.
According to the details compiled by Anadolu Agency from the case files, Karakus was stationed at the base, which served as the main jet deployment of the capital Ankara, until July 15 and held meetings with other coup plotters including former Gen. Hakan Evrim, Akinci’s commanding officer.
After the coup was defeated, Karakus was arrested by security forces. Denying his role in the putsch, he dismissed the radio conversations as montage — a claim later disproved by forensic scientists.