Gülen’s arrest warrants to be compiled for Red Notice request


The Justice Ministry is reportedly preparing a new legal case that combines all the charges against U.S.-based, controversial imam Fettullah Gülen and will request his extradition from the U.S.Gülen is accused of being the leader of a criminal organization known as the Gülen Movement. He currently resides in exile in Pennsylvania with no passport after a Turkish court canceled it, citing irregularities. He could face extradition from the U.S. in the coming days. Several Turkish media outlets reported on Monday that the Justice Ministry is currently preparing a new legal case that combines all the charges against Gülen, and Turkish officials are expected to request his extradition.An arrest warrant was issued last December by an Istanbul court for Gülen as part of the December 14 Tahşiye operation on charges of leading a terrorist organization on the grounds of demonizing a rival religious group. Moreover, last week an Ankara court ordered the arrest of 32 out of 62 Gülen Movement-linked suspects who were detained as part of a probe investigating cheating that allegedly took place in the 2010 Public Personnel Selection Exam (KPSS). It was reported that Gülen is the primary suspect in a prosecutor's indictment into cheating allegations concerning the KPSS held in 2010. In addition, the police officers allegedly associated with the Gülen Movement who had escaped to Romania after being accused of wiretapping President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's office while he was prime minister were extradited from Romania and arrived in Istanbul last Saturday and were immediately arrested.It is believed that Gülen is behind these three cases, so the Justice Ministry is currently combining all three cases and preparing all necessary documents to ask Interpol to conduct an investigation and issue a Red Notice. According to local media reports, the ministry will be combining warrants to prevent a U.S. rejection of an extradition request for Gülen due to formal reasons. All of the charges will be merged into a single case at the General Directorate of Penal Affairs. The ministry will later appeal to Interpol to issue a Red Notice for Gülen. In the case of acceptance, Gülen will be sought in the 190 member countries of Interpol with detailed information, including credentials, allegedly committed crimes, photographs and fingerprints. Red Notices are valid for five years. Since his residence is known, Turkey will demand his extradition from the U.S.