Rezan Epözdemir's detention period has been extended

Lawyer Rezan Epözdemir was detained yesterday on charges of "bribery," "political-military espionage," and "aiding FETÖ." Epözdemir's detention period was extended by one day by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office.

"THIS DETENTION IS A COMPLETE CONSPIRACY"

Epözdemir, who made a statement on social media after being taken into custody, said, "This detention is a complete conspiracy. The person who set up this conspiracy and misled the institutions is a lawyer who has previously attempted to conspiracy against me." Epözdemir's post continued:

This person had previously filed a complaint regarding the Denizbank-Seçil Erzan file, in which we were the complainant's attorney, and had a decision of non-prosecution issued in favor of the bank's managers, contrary to the material evidence in the file. However, when the Office of the Chief Public Prosecutor was changed and a lawsuit was filed against these people for fraud, he made troll accounts share the information and shared a photo in November 2024, claiming that I had made him do this.

The story of the photograph in question is as follows;

As documented in the attached official program, the delegation arrived in Istanbul on June 20, 2014, as part of an official visit. Over the course of five days, they held a series of official visits, including dinners with businesspeople and diplomats at Eczacıbaşı and Büyük Kulübü, and dinners with the CHP chairman and deputy chairman. This program is officially registered with FARA. Dan Arbell, who attended the dinner on June 21, 2014, and was accused of being a Mosad agent, hosted a program on TRT World for seven years, from 2016 to 2023. As evidenced by the attached program, on June 21, 2014, Gürsel Tekin, then the CHP Secretary General and my client, invited us to a dinner on Galatasaray Island (then known as Su Island) for the purpose of providing translation services for his current wife, Aylin, my brother's fiancée at the time, who was an English teacher. The photograph in question was taken while posing among hundreds of people, with Gürsel sitting at his table as the host. This photograph and the official program are available on the CHP's corporate website. We attended this meeting, which consisted of participants I'd never seen or spoken to in my life, at the invitation of former CHP Secretary General Gürsel Tekin, for the purpose of providing translation services for my brother's wife. We stayed for a total of half an hour before leaving. Indeed, Gürsel Tekin has previously made a statement regarding these matters. If a detention order is being issued against me based on such a photograph, then everyone who attended these meetings should be detained and an investigation launched. Moreover, following a criminal complaint filed against me regarding this matter, the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office issued a "Decision of No Investigation" approximately six months ago, based on file number 2025/2096 and decision number 2025/2137. So, how did such a decision come about that a detention order was initiated?

My lawyers will raise any necessary objections to the issuance of a detention order in a case where a "Decision of No Investigation" has been issued. For the past 20 years, I have handled cases such as those of Münevver Karabulut, Pınar Gültekin, and Ahmet Minguzzi in Türkiye, representing the families of the victims. My wife and children continue to receive death threats and messages due to my representation in the Ahmet Minguzzi murder case. Both the police and the Chief Public Prosecutor's Office are well aware of this. I have full confidence that the material truth regarding the investigation against me will be revealed and justice will be served.

As you know, I was taken into custody this morning. This detention is a complete conspiracy. The person who orchestrated this conspiracy and misled the institutions is a lawyer who has previously attempted to conspiracy against me.

This person is Denizbank-Seçil Erzan, for whom we were the complainant representatives in the past… pic.twitter.com/jv7ERVtQcr

— Rezan Epözdemir (@rezan_epozdemir) August 10, 2025

Source: NEWS CENTER