The court ruled that there was no need to issue a sentence for the crime of “insult”

CANSU PİŞKİN, İSTANBUL

The third hearing in the trial of journalist Furkan Karabay, who is charged with “insult” and “defamation” upon a complaint filed by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s former lawyer Mustafa Doğan İnal, was held at the İstanbul 2nd Criminal Court of First Instance on 6 June 2024.

Karabay and lawyers for both parties attended the hearing, which P24 monitored.

Repeating their final opinion on the case submitted at the previous hearing, the prosecutor demanded conviction for both impugned crimes.

Co-plaintiff Mustafa Doğan İnal’s lawyer also demanded conviction for Karabay.

Karabay demanded his acquittal.

In his defense statement against the prosecutor’s final opinion, Karabay’s lawyer Enes Hikmet Ermaner said, “My client reported a material fact to the public. Elements of the impugned crime have not formed. We demand acquittal.”

The court sentenced Karabay to 1 year and 15 days in prison on charge of “defamation.” The court ruled that there was no need to issue a sentence for the crime of “insult” on the grounds that Karabay was already handed the maximum penalty for “defamation” that fits his action.

Karabay was on trial over his report titled “Muhammed Yakut, Erdoğan'ın avukatını neden tehdit etti? FETÖ Borsası iddialarının olduğu silahlı saldırıda iddianame çıktı," (Why has Muhammed Yakut threatened Erdoğan’s lawyer? The indictment on the armed assault concerning FETO Market has come out) which was published on Gerçek Gündem news site on 19 April 2023.