Gülenists in exam cheating scandal face terror charges
Prosecutors wrapped up an indictment against 230 suspects accused of cheating and helping people cheat on a critical exam for employment of civil servants.
The indictment accuses suspects of being members of a terrorist organization, in reference to followers of the controversial Gülen Movement, which is implicated in a terror investigation for its alleged attempts to overthrow the government.
The Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office said in a statement that the indictment includes evidence that suspects who were detained in earlier operations obtained questions and answers to the Public Personnel Selection Exam (KPSS) beforehand and supplied them to others.
The indictment said the majority of suspects who achieved high marks on the exam were either relatives, members of the same family or worked at the same schools and companies linked to the Gülen Movement, according to media reports.
Evidence also points to relations between fugitive suspects linked to the movement and those who proctored the exam.
Apart from terror charges, suspects are accused of fraud. The prosecutors' statement said "the organization" aimed to achieve priority in the assignment to civil service posts to enable the infiltration of its members.
Two nonprofit organizations run by Gülenists are at the heart of the cheating scandal. Officials at the Turgut Özal and Hamle Associations are accused of obtaining questions and answers from Gülenists employed by the state-run body that organizes the exam and supplied them to fellow Gülenists. Senior officials from both associations disappeared after the inquiry started into past KPSS exams earlier this year and are believed to have fled abroad. Two former presidents of the Measuring, Selection and Placement Center (ÖSYM), which oversees the exams, are among the suspects.
The KPSS is the only exam one can take in Turkey to work in the public sector, barring a few exceptions to get a public sector job. Civil servants hired after passing the exam are employed in almost all state-run agencies, ranging from ministries to courthouses and prisons. It is viewed as a key stepping stone for Gülenists to infiltrate key posts.
The indictment accuses suspects of being members of a terrorist organization, in reference to followers of the controversial Gülen Movement, which is implicated in a terror investigation for its alleged attempts to overthrow the government.
The Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office said in a statement that the indictment includes evidence that suspects who were detained in earlier operations obtained questions and answers to the Public Personnel Selection Exam (KPSS) beforehand and supplied them to others.
The indictment said the majority of suspects who achieved high marks on the exam were either relatives, members of the same family or worked at the same schools and companies linked to the Gülen Movement, according to media reports.
Evidence also points to relations between fugitive suspects linked to the movement and those who proctored the exam.
Apart from terror charges, suspects are accused of fraud. The prosecutors' statement said "the organization" aimed to achieve priority in the assignment to civil service posts to enable the infiltration of its members.
Two nonprofit organizations run by Gülenists are at the heart of the cheating scandal. Officials at the Turgut Özal and Hamle Associations are accused of obtaining questions and answers from Gülenists employed by the state-run body that organizes the exam and supplied them to fellow Gülenists. Senior officials from both associations disappeared after the inquiry started into past KPSS exams earlier this year and are believed to have fled abroad. Two former presidents of the Measuring, Selection and Placement Center (ÖSYM), which oversees the exams, are among the suspects.
The KPSS is the only exam one can take in Turkey to work in the public sector, barring a few exceptions to get a public sector job. Civil servants hired after passing the exam are employed in almost all state-run agencies, ranging from ministries to courthouses and prisons. It is viewed as a key stepping stone for Gülenists to infiltrate key posts.
Last Update: December 11, 2015 20:20