A British court on Friday ruled that the extradition case of three individuals who are believed to be linked to the Gülenist Terror Group (FETÖ), which Turkey says is behind the July 2016 coup attempt, be decided end of November.
The Westminster Magistrates Court, which will decide whether former Koza Holding director Hamdi Akın Ipek and two other defendants -- Talip Büyük, the alleged Iraq "imam" of the FETÖ terror group, and Bank Asya director Ali Çelik -- are to be extradited to Turkey, will hold the judgment hearing on Nov. 28 2019.
Ipek was detained in May after Turkey's request for his extradition over charges related to the aforementioned defeated coup.
A court confiscated his passport and banned him from leaving London but released him on a £50,000 ($66,000) bail, a common procedure in extradition cases in the U.K.
On Friday, the hearing continued to hear testimony, including that from a witness, allegedly from the Turkish judiciary, who answered questions from behind a curtain. His identity was not disclosed due to an anonymity order issued by the court.
The defense team submitted a request to lift all bail conditions previously set for the defendant but residence order; however, the court rejected to lift any of the previous bail conditions.
If extradited, Ipek, accused of attempting to overthrow Turkey's government and violating the Constitution, may face up to two aggravated life sentences.
He also faces a possible 132 years in prison for setting up an armed terror group, military and political espionage, forging documents, and money laundering.
Ipek left Turkey prior to the seizure of his Koza Holding by court order in October 2015. He lost lawsuits he filed in U.K. courts for the return of his assets seized by Turkey. His brother, Cafer Ipek, and mother, Melek Ipek, are among 45 defendants currently on trial in Turkey for FETÖ links with his business conglomerate.
Akın Ipek, who studied business in the United Kingdom, inherited a printing business from his father and in the 2000s, his business empire considerably expanded - with some critics tying it to his links to FETÖ - and branched into the mining sector with a gold mine in western Turkey. He made a foray into media by buying the Bugün newspaper in 2005. It was followed by more media purchases, including Kanaltürk TV and the establishment of Bugün TV. Newspapers and TV stations were well-known mouthpieces of FETÖ before Turkey moved to shut them down.
Bank Asya was a major lender associated with the group before it was handed over to a state-run fund managing assets seized from criminals in 2015. It has long been at the center of accusations that it was used by FETÖ members for money laundering. A large number of suspects in FETÖ investigations have accounts in the bank and several acknowledged that they deposited money in the bank to support the terrorist group.
In addition to orchestrating the defeated coup, Ankara also accuses FETÖ of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkish institutions, particularly the military, police, and judiciary.
251 people were killed and thousands of others were injured during the defeated coup on July 15, 2016.
