A Turkish citizen who was detained after filing a criminal complaint against President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was released on house arrest on Thursday.
Oktay Avcu, a shopkeeper in Mersin, went to Mersin Courthouse to file a criminal complaint about videos that Erdoğan showed at rallies, which government officials later admitted were edited. After submitting his petition to the Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, Avcu was immediately detained upon the order of the prosecutor based on certain statements in his petition.
Turkey’s presidential elections were marred not only by electoral irregularities but also a widespread disinformation campaign run by the ruling Justice and Development (AKP) government.
Journalist Altan Sancar has reported that a company founded by individuals of Egyptian origin in Turkey had entered into an agreement to advertise the manipulated videos on a social media page that promotes the AKP.
While some statements from the AKP claimed that these videos were not manipulated, Erdoğan himself said during a recent program on TRT that, “Kılıçdaroğlu has video footage with those in Qandil. Regardless of whether they were manipulated or not, PKK members have expressed support through these videos.”
Consequently, the Republican People’s Party (CHP) filed a one million lira lawsuit against Erdoğan.
Avcu also filed a criminal complaint against Erdoğan for the same reason on Wednesday. However, he was immediately detained, spending the night in custody. Avcu was taken to the prosecutor’s office the next morning where he was referred to court for potential arrest. The court decided to release him under judicial control conditions, restricting him from leaving his residence until the end of the trial. Avcu will be required to wear electronic monitoring devices during this period.
