New footage emerges over spoliation of evidence in Gezi protester’s murder case

İsmail Saymaz ISTANBUL

New footage has been revealed as a part of the investigation into a missing security camera recording belonging to a hotel in the case into the murder of Gezi protester Ali İsmail Korkmaz.

In the footage, police officer Hüseyin Engin, who is being tried in the case without arrest, is seen entering the hotel and ordering the person in charge to shut down its security cameras.

During the probe, an 18-minute-long video recording belonging to a nearby hotel that had a camera directed to the street where 19-year-old Korkmaz was beaten by police and civilians could not be found. The hotel owner reportedly said he had cut off the power in the building as a precaution during the clashes.

After it was determined that officer Engin entered the hotel on the same night, the obtained recordings in compact discs were sent to the Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TÜBİTAK) for further examination.

The footage showing Engin entering the hotel has been obtained by daily Radikal, while the sound recordings were also revealed by TÜBİTAK, which used voice enhancing technology.

Engin is seen entering the hotel at 00.16 a.m. and asking the hotel employee whether the security cameras were working. After the employee confirmed the cameras were working, Engin replied “You can shut them down,” also asking him to delete the footage from 10 minutes before.

TÜBİTAK has sent the documents to the Kayseri 3rd Heavy Penalty Court that is hearing the case.

Apart from the murder case, a case against Engin is also ongoing on charges of spoliation of evidence.

Korkmaz succumbed to his injuries in hospital on July 10, 2013 after being brutally beaten by a group wearing civilian clothes as he tried to escape a police tear gas attack over one month before in Eskişehir.