The life of Ogün Samast, the murderer of Hrant Dink would be in danger in prison

September 1, 2017 By administrator

Ogün Samast, the murderer of Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, is in danger of death. The Turkish newspaper Cumhuriyet writes that the prison authorities asked Ogün Samast to move from the collective cells to a single cell. The prison administration received a flash message calling for the change of cell to ensure the physical safety of Ogün Samast as his life would be in danger. Cumhuriyet also reveals a letter from Ogün Samast sent to his wife in which Hrant Dink’s assassin claimed that he was regularly taken to a cell and beaten there. His assailants asked him to commit suicide. “They told me it would be better if I commit suicide, otherwise they will kill me,” Ogün Samast wrote.

Indeed if the murderer disappeared, the file already made complicated by the judges’ will track would be more blurred …

From the prison of Silivi, Ogün Samast was transferred to that of Kodjaeli. Sentenced to 22 years in prison, his sentence was reduced to 14 years. In prison for 10 years, it should go out in 4 years.

Krikor Amirzayan

Turkey: Killer of Hrant Dink appeals to testify in ‘criminal organization’ leg of case

November 16, 2015 By administrator

Turkish assassin Ogün Samast

The triggerman who shot dead Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink almost nine years ago has appealed to present his testimony as part of the “criminal organization” leg of the case into the murder. The assassin Ogün Samast has also asked to be transferred to a prison in Istanbul near to where the case is being held.

Since he was sentenced by a juvenile court to 22 years in jail on July 2011, Samast has not attended any hearings at the Istanbul 5th Heavy Penal Court, where another case has been heard focusing on the “criminal organization” aspect of the killing.

In a letter dated Nov. 13, 2015, Samast told the court that he is now willing to give his testimony in the “criminal organization” leg of the case. He also asked to be transferred to a prison in Istanbul, from the high-security F-type prison in Kandıra, Kocaeli province, where he is currently been jailed.

Dink, who was the editor-in-chief of Agos, was shot dead outside its office building in Istanbul’s Şişli district on Jan. 19, 2007 by 17-year-old Samast.

In October 2014, the trial took a significant turn after the court in Istanbul overseeing the case announced that it would focus on allegations that the crime was hatched as part of a wider “criminal organization.” Lawyers representing the Dink family had demanded such a move since the start of the retrial.

In November 2014, the Constitutional Court ruled that civil servants and institutions allegedly implicated in the murder should be investigated.

ISTANBUL: Hitman in Dink murder testifies to prosecutor as witness

December 5, 2014 By administrator

Ogün Samast, who was convicted in 2011 of killing Hrant Dink, the editor-in-chief of the Agos newspaper, is escorted to court by gendarmes. (Photo: Cihan)

TODAYSZAMAN.COM / ISTANBUL

Ogün Samast, who was sentenced to 21 years, six months in prison in 2011 for assassinating Armenian-Turkish journalist Hrant Dink, is testifying as a witness in the ongoing investigation into the murder.

Dink was assassinated in broad daylight outside the office of his Agos newspaper on Jan. 17, 2007.

The convicted hitman was taken from Kandıra Prison and brought to the Çağlayan Courthouse on Friday morning to testify as a witness. The police have taken strict security measures on the seventh floor of the courthouse where Samast is delivering his testimony to Prosecutor Yusuf Hakkı Doğan.

Samast had sent a letter to Doğan saying that he wanted to speak about the murder. The prosecutor decided to listen to Samast as a witness in the investigation.

As part of the same investigation, two former heads of the intelligence unit of the National Police Department — Sabri Uzun and Ramazan Akyürek — and a former police chief, Ali Fuat Yılmazer, testified as suspects. Other high-profile figures have been called to testify as suspects, including former İstanbul Police Chief Celalettin Cerrah, former İstanbul Deputy Governor Ergun Güngör and former İstanbul Police Department Intelligence Unit Chief Ahmet İlhan Güler.

Dink was shot and killed by an ultranationalist teenager seven years ago. The hitman, Samast, and 18 others were brought to trial. During the process, the lawyers for the Dink family and the co-plaintiffs in the case presented evidence indicating that Samast did not act alone. Another suspect, Yasin Hayal, was given life in prison for inciting Samast to murder. However, Erhan Tuncel, who worked as an informant for the Trabzon Police Department and was the man accused of initiating the effort to have Dink murdered, was found not guilty.