Baykal's lawyer, Muzaffer Yılmaz, filed the criminal complaint at the Ankara Prosecutor's Office.
Diplomatic cables released by WikiLeaks, a website that specializes in distributing leaked information, include claims that Turkish security officials briefed the US Embassy in Ankara about Ergenekon in 2008 and 2009 and mention bribery allegations implicating Baykal, sparking reactions from both the Interior Ministry and Baykal.
WikiLeaks released a large number of classified US State Department documents online in 2010, which attracted widespread attention around the world. According to these documents, officials from the National Police Department visited the US Embassy in Ankara in 2008 and 2009 where they briefed officials on Ergenekon -- a shadowy crime network that has alleged links to the state and is suspected of plotting to topple the government -- and accused Baykal of involvement in bribery.
Earlier this week, Baykal voiced his criticisms of the claims, saying, “How can an independent country [even] brief a foreign mission about an ongoing internal investigation?” He also said he would take legal action over the bribery allegations directed against him.
The criminal complaint demanded that the National Police Department present all information and documents regarding the bribery allegations to the prosecutor's office within three days; however, security officials have not released any documents and said they did not conduct any meetings with US Embassy officials.
The criminal complaint also noted that any claims by security officials that the meetings with US Embassy officials did not take place are far from credible, but provided no evidence for its assertion.
