Speaking at the General Staff's weekly briefing yesterday, the legal advisor for the General Staff, Hıfzı Çubuklu, said an investigation has been launched by the İstanbul Chief Prosecutor's Office into Air Forces Judicial Undersecretary Col. Ahmet Zeki Üçok, who had been conducting a military investigation into alleged secret meetings of military academy students planning a coup d'etat before he was arrested last week on charges of membership in a gang that provided false health reports to people attempting to avoid military service. Çubuklu said he would not comment further on the issue.
Recent reports suggest there may be more to Üçok's illegal activities, as he has also been implicated in the sale of a piece of land along the proposed route of a third bridge to be built connecting the Asian and European sides of İstanbul whose sale had been forbidden by law.
Responding to questions about Lt. Col. Mustafa Dönmez, who surrendered to military authorities on Jan. 12 following a search of his home earlier in the same month, which revealed hand grenades, rifles, Kalashnikovs and various other weapons, Çubuklu said Dönmez was arrested by a military court for “concealing military equipment” and has been in custody for eight months.
Çubuklu added that even though Dönmez was released by the military court, he remains under arrest because of the 13th High Criminal Court's decision to arrest Dönmez, who is also a suspect in the trial of Ergenekon, a clandestine gang charged with plotting to overthrow the government.
