ULTRA-NATIONALIST MOBSTER QUESTIONED OVER ERGENEKON

Today’s Zaman
March 21 2008
Turkey

An ultranationalist leader of the underworld who is serving 14 years
on organized crime charges was interrogated for several hours over
alleged links to a crime group with suspected links to the army and
bureaucracy, unearthed by the police as part of an investigation into
an arms cache found in Ýstanbul in June of last year.

Ultranationalist Sedat Peker was interrogated on Wednesday in Ýstanbul
for 10 hours over his links to a retired general who was detained as
part of an investigation into a gang that has shady links to groups
secreted within the state. These groups are commonly referred to as
the deep state in Turkey, a vague definition of a phenomenon whereby
individuals and groups occupying various positions in the state take
justice into their own hands to shape Turkey in accordance with
their political convictions. The investigation of the gang, which
calls itself Ergenekon after a legend of how Turks came into being,
has resulted in evidence showing that the gang was preparing the way
for a coup d’etat in Turkey in 2009.

With the purpose of creating chaos in the country and thus an
atmosphere suitable for a military takeover, the group staged a number
of attacks and murders whose perpetrators remain unknown as well as
others in which the assailants have been found. They are also suspected
of being behind the murder of ethnic Armenian journalist Hrant Dink.

In January of this year, 39 suspects were arrested during raids on the
gang, including retired Gen. Veli Kucuk, who the two prosecutors on the
case say has connections with Peker. On Wednesday, Peker was brought
to Ýstanbul from Kandýra Prison in Kocaeli to answer prosecutors’
questions about his 15-year relationship with Kucuk and whether it
is mere coincidence that a real estate company owned by Peker is
named Ergenekon.

Kucuk in his interrogation had said Peker is the "son of a friend."

The prosecutors say the two became acquainted between the years
1993 and 1996, when Kucuk was serving in the military as a regiment
commander of the gendarmerie in Kocaeli, where a number of mysterious
and unresolved murders were committed during the aforementioned
time period.

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