03 December 2018•Update: 03 December 2018
ANKARA
A Turkish Justice Ministry official at Turkey’s Embassy in London has been called home amid a so-far unsuccessful attempt to extradite a member of the FETO terrorist group.
The attache was summoned home and faces an investigation over improper paperwork on the extradition of Akin Ipek, a fugitive suspected member of the Fetullah Terrorist Group (FETO), the group behind a 2016 defeated coup in Turkey.
“The post shared on social media allegedly sent by the Justice Ministry regarding FETO fugitive Akin Ipek's extradition process doesn’t reflect the truth,” the ministry said in a statement.
“Our ministry sent proper documents to the British court on Sept. 13. We have ascertained that our official in London prepared a one-page information sheet on his own and sent it to the British Prosecutor’s office without ministry approval.”
“It’s clear that this information note, which was allegedly sent by our ministry and shared on social media accounts, didn’t correspond with the procedures for correspondence in our ministry and didn’t include any title, name, or signature,” it said.
"We launched a probe into our London attache and summoned him to Ankara on Nov. 30,” it added.
On Nov. 28 a British court rejected Turkey’s request for extradition of three suspects linked to FETO, but the verdict is open to appeal.
FETO and its U.S.-based leader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the defeated coup of July 15, 2016 which left 251 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.
Ankara also accuses FETO of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police, and judiciary.
Reporting by Aylin Sirikli:Writing by Seyit Ahmet Aytac
