Court returns indictment of Turkish fashion designer over ‘inconsistent evidence’

ISTANBUL

An Istanbul court on Feb. 6 returned an indictment demanding three years in jail for fashion designer Barbaros Şansal, who was arrested on charges of “inciting hate among the public” in social media posts and video footage in which he “insulted” Turkey, on the grounds that the indictment had “inconsistencies.” 

The indictment against Şansal, who was deported from Northern Cyprus and arrested in Turkey for social media posts shared in the early hours of Jan. 1, was not accepted by the court. 

The court noted that the indictment claimed one of Şansal’s tweets was sent from Istanbul, though the suspect was in Cyprus at the time.

It also said the content of the charge was “inciting hatred among the public,” but the offense that referred him to the court for arrest, “insulting the Turkish nation,” was also included in the file. This would create confusion in any trial, it ruled.