Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor Yüksel Kocaman on Monday sent an SMS to a pro-Erdoğan journalist appearing on a TV program during which the journalist called on prosecutors to jail a judge who had been put under house arrest, Aktif haber reported.
A video from a TV program on TGRT shows Fuat Uğur and Cem Küçük calling on prosecutors to jail Judge Çetin Sönmez, who was put under house arrest due to an investigation into the release of Adil Öksüz, one of the prime suspects in a coup attempt in Turkey on July 15, 2016. Öksüz was released by Judge Köksal Çelik after his detention on July 16, and an appeal made to the court over which Sönmez presides for the arrest of Öksüz was rejected. Following an investigation Sözmez was ordered to serve house arrest with an electronic bracelet.
At one point during the program Küçük read an SMS sent by prosecutor Kocaman saying they have already appealed the decision and that Sönmez’s re-arrest would probably be evaluated today.
Küçük, a staunchly pro-government journalist known for his attacks on government critics on social media, was among journalists who urged the re-arrest of 21 journalists previously released by a court.
In a series of messages from his Twitter account Küçük wrote: “If those traitors are not jailed again, some will pay a very heavy price. I say this knowingly. Things will go crazy. … [Justice Minister] Bekir Bozdağ should immediately convene the HSYK [Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors] and take action against some judges. This is the demand of the nation. Every prosecutor and the judge who decides to release known FETÖ [a derogatory term used by the government against Gülen movement] supporters will be expelled from their profession. This is the absolute decision of the state.”
While the 21 journalists were re-arrested by other courts, the HSYK suspended the three judges who had freed the journalists after eight months of pre-trial.