Bulgaria rejects extradition of Gülenist suspect

Bulgarian media outlets reported that a Bulgarian court rejected Turkey's request the for extradition of Abdullah Büyük, a suspected member of the Gülenist Terror Organization (FETÖ), who has sought asylum in Turkey's northwestern neighbor.

Büyük, a businessman with links to FETÖ, was detained in Bulgaria last month upon a request by Turkey where he was released pending trial last year in an investigation against Gülenist businesspeople. He appeared before a court in Sofia last week and appealed for approval of his asylum request. The court ruled in his favor and ruled out his extradition, although the court ruling remains subject to appeal.

Büyük was detained last year by Istanbul police raiding a meeting of Gülenists in the Üsküdar district. Büyük, the owner of a domain name registration company, was allegedly the host of the meeting where businesspeople gathered to discuss financing FETÖ. He and nine others were released under judicial control, while a suspect was caught destroying documents about money flow to the organization only moments before the police raid.