The Gaziantep 9th High Criminal Court on Wednesday handed down a 15-year sentence to Muzaffer Bayram, the former general secretary of Turkey’s Board of Judges and Prosecutors (HSK), on charges of membership in the faith-based Gülen movement, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported.
Turkey accuses the movement of orchestrating a coup attempt in 2016, although it strongly denies any involvement.
After dismissal from his job by a government decree, Bayram was arrested in November 2016 over Gülen links.
He attended his last hearing via videoconference from his cell in Kırklareli province.
Meanwhile the Adana Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office on Wednesday ordered detention of 21 people including active duty soldiers over Gülen links.
Over half a million Turkish citizens have been subjects of prosecution since the abortive putsch, and some 140,000 public servants were dismissed by government decrees for alleged ties to the Gülen movement.