Accomplice gets over 5,000 years in Ankara bombing retrial
ANKARA
Mehmet Veysi Dolaşan, found to have transported explosives used in the deadly 2016 bomb attack in central Ankara, has been sentenced to a total of 5,172 years in prison.
The attack carried out by PKK killed 36 people and injured hundreds. On Oct. 16, an Ankara court retried the case after the Court of Appeals overturned earlier verdicts against six defendants.
Dolaşan received a 960-year sentence for “assisting in the bombing deaths” of 32 individuals and an additional 120 years for “assisting in the killing” of four children.
He was also sentenced to 384 years for “aiding in the attempted murder” of 32 children and 3,708 years for “aiding in the attempted murder” of 309 people.
The court separated the cases of defendants Halil İbrahim Demirci and Uğur Ayçil, while Rıdvan Tekin was acquitted.
Neval Basut was sentenced to 18 months for making propaganda for an illegal organization, and Velat Cin received a 12-year sentence for membership in an armed terrorist organization.
The bombing occurred on March 13, 2016, when a car driven by PKK member Seher Çağla Demir exploded near Güvenpark, where civilians were waiting at bus stops. Both Demir and another person in the car died at the scene.
In the initial trial, Dolaşan had been sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment as the main perpetrator.
