This is how Hadi Özışık reacted to journalists demanding heavy prison terms: 'There is a trap for Erdoğan here!'

Hadi Özışık, owner of the news site Internet Haber, close to the AKP, claimed that the heavy prison sentences for journalists were a "trap" for AKP President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.

In his comment on the issue on his social media account, Özışık said, "İsmail Saymaz, Şaban Sevinç, Murat Ağırel... We are people of different worlds, this is accepted. But I could not remain silent in the face of the figures in the indictment. Thank goodness for the prosecution of these journalists. But these 14 years, 18 years, 24 years... Did they kill a man?"

Özışık used the following words:

"If it were the late Süleyman Özışık, he would say that there is a trap for President Erdoğan here. You carry out a dawn operation on a journalist who is under house arrest and has handcuffs on his feet. You throw him in. Okay. This could happen to me, too. My place is clear, my cause is clear. But I also have to oppose things that will harm my cause. My neighborhood may be angry with me. But justice requires this."

HEAVY IMPRISONMENT REQUESTS FOR JOURNALISTS

An indictment was filed against four journalists who were targeted for allegedly spreading misleading information about the 'fund' profiteering in the capital markets.

In the indictment filed against detained journalists Şaban Sevinç and Mustafa Balcı, a prison sentence of up to 22 years, 5 months and 15 days was requested for Sevinç, and a prison sentence of up to 10 years for Mustafa Balcı. A prison sentence of up to 14 years and 10 months was requested separately for İsmail Saymaz, who is under house arrest, and our detained writer Murat Ağırel.

While journalist Mustafa Balcı was accused of "publicly insulting a public official due to his duty", "slander" and "publicly disseminating misleading information", it was claimed that Şaban Sevinç committed the same crimes in a chain manner.

In the indictment prepared by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, AKP Deputy Chairman and Party Spokesperson Ömer Çelik was included as the victim.

In the indictment, it was claimed that the two men presented untrue and misleading claims regarding the fund investigation to the public as verified information.

In this investigation, journalists Murat Ağırel and İsmail Saymaz, who were given house arrest, were accused of "publicly insulting a public official due to their duties", "slander", "publicly disseminating misleading information to the public" and "unlawfully providing or obtaining personal data".

The prosecutor's office claimed that the journalists' statements linking Trade Minister Ömer Bolat to the fund investigation were not supported by concrete information and documents.