Turkish parents report drug dealer son to police before changing story
Ceylan Sever - ISTANBUL
The parents and their son
A Turkish father and mother have reported to the police that their son was a drug dealer but changed their story after learning that he could face 30 years in jail.
The 21-year-old son, identified only as Ali Ö., was arrested in Istanbul’s Gaziosmanpaşa district on June 30 after his parents told the police that he “used and sold drugs.”
The Istanbul First Heavy Penal Court recently accepted the indictment of the prosecutor, who seeks to jail the young man for up to 30 years over drug trafficking.
After learning about the heavy charge, the parents applied to the court and said that they had exaggerated their accusations against their son.
“He has been using drugs since he was 16 years old. After he refused rehabilitation, I thought with my wife that perhaps he would get rid of this bad habit if he gets jailed for some time,” the 41-year-old father said in the petition.
In Turkish law, the crime of selling drugs carries heavier jail sentences than merely using them for own consumption.
It was not immediately clear whether the prosecution or the judges could drop the drug trafficking charge by taking the parents’ updated testimony as enough evidence.
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