NO ARREST FOR ARMENIAN SOLDIER’S KILLER
Hurriyet Daily News
Feb 1 2012
Turkey
A military court in the southeastern province of Diyarbakır ruled Jan.
30 to continue without arrest the trial of suspect Kıvanc Agaoglu
in the case of Sevag Å~^ahin Balıkcı, a Turkish citizen of Armenian
origin killed under dubious circumstances while performing his military
service in 2011.
“While I was drawing barbed wire in a tilted position, I heard the
sound of a G3 rifle cocking. Then I heard the sound of a gunshot. When
I turned my head and looked, [I saw] Agaoglu standing with his G3
weapon pointing at Sevag Å~^ahin Balıkcı. Balıkcı then dropped to
the ground,” eyewitness Halil EkÅ~_i said in his most recent testimony.
A court delegation decided to turn down the request for suspect
Agaoglu to be tried under arrest through a majority vote.
Upon the request of the Chief Justice, EkÅ~_i also demonstrated the
incident inside the courtroom with a G3 rifle, the standard issue
infantry rifle used in the Turkish military. The Diyarbakır Second
Air Force Command Military Tribunal had decided to reschedule the last
hearing for Jan. 30 after EkÅ~_i changed his testimony regarding the
circumstances under which Balıkcı lost his life on April 24, 2011,
the same date regarded as the anniversary of the 1915 events.
From: Emil Lazarian | Ararat NewsPress
Disclaimer: This article was contributed and translated into English by Emil Lazarian. While we strive for quality, the views and accuracy of the content remain the responsibility of the contributor. Please verify all facts independently before reposting or citing.
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