Former police chief Hayati Başdağ, who is wanted in multiple cases linked to the outlawed Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ), was detained in Istanbul and later jailed pending trial, Turkish authorities announced Tuesday.
The Istanbul Police Department’s counterterrorism and intelligence units, working under the coordination of the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, located Başdağ in the city’s Fatih district and captured him in an operation, authorities said.
Başdağ, a former police chief dismissed from public service as part of an FETÖ investigation, was previously arrested in 2014 and released in 2020, according to the court records cited by officials.
Authorities said arrest warrants had been issued for Başdağ by courts in Ankara and Istanbul on charges including membership in an armed terrorist organization and unlawfully recording personal data.
Investigators also alleged that Başdağ used ByLock, an encrypted messaging application used by FETÖ members, and that he took part in the terrorist group’s alleged network within the Police Academy.
Testimony in the case further described him as a person who received rank directly from FETÖ leader Fethullah Gülen, authorities unrevealed.
The group, which is designated as a terrorist group by Türkiye and led by U.S.-based deceased Gülen, is accused of orchestrating the 2016 coup attempt in Türkiye that killed 251 people and injured nearly 2,200.
Başdağ is also among the defendants in several high-profile FETÖ-linked cases, including alleged illegal wiretapping and espionage, the Tahsiye case, and a tape conspiracy targeting former opposition leaders.
The Tahşiye group is known to be a branch of the Nur Movement. The group and its leader, Mehmet Doğan, a former imam, are known for their opposition to FETÖ and have a firmer stance against interfaith dialogue than other movements.
The group is also charged with recording and distributing over the internet sex tapes of former Republican People’s Party (CHP) leader Deniz Baykal.
Others, mostly lawmakers from the Nationalist Movement Party (MHP), had also stepped down from their posts after their videos were published online.
