Court releases 'man with machete' who attacked Gezi protesters

ISTANBUL

A public prosecutor has demanded up to 27 years in prison for the “man with a machete” who attacked Gezi Park protesters in Istanbul’s city center in early July. DHA photo

An Istanbul court today released S.Ç., dubbed the “machete man” after video surfaced showing him allegedly attacking Gezi protesters with a machete at the beginning of July, pending trial.

He was detained by police earlier today at the airport after returning to Turkey following weeks on the run in Morocco, according to daily Hürriyet. 

After footage of the man chasing protesters with a machete appeared on the Internet, police detained him, but he was later released by a court on the grounds that he was not a flight risk. 

S.Ç., however, immediately boarded a flight for Morocco on July 10, after which a court issued an arrest warrant for him.

The man twice postponed his return to Turkey, although his wife and child returned to Turkey on Aug. 13, Hürriyet reported.