An Istanbul court accepted the indictment of allegedly Gülen Movement-linked prosecutors and a judge who are accused of wrongful conduct in the December 17 and December 25 operations, which the government defines as a coup attempt against the elected government.

The Bakırköy 16th High Criminal Court, which accepted the indictment on Wednesday, has sent notices to prosecutors Celal Kara, Süleyman Karaçöl and Muammer Akkaş, who are accused of wrongful conduct and neglect of duty, to present their plea and any proof of innocence they may have.

The bill of indictment, which was prepared by the Second Chamber of the Supreme Board of Judges and Prosecutors (HSYK), accused Kara of abusing his authority by requesting the court confiscate the assets of suspects without obtaining proper evidence and specifying that there was reasonable doubt about the suspects obtaining these assets through criminal means.

It was reported that Kara was the prosecutor handling the December 17 investigation, while Akkaş handled the December 25 case and Karaçöl was the judge of the same case. A separate indictment was also prepared for Akkaş and Karaçöl, claiming that they leaked confidential information that even the Istanbul Police Department did not have about the December 25 investigation to the media, violating privacy.

Earlier in December, the HSYK decided to suspend Akkaş, Kara and other alleged Gülen Movement-linked prosecutor, Zekeriya Öz. The 2nd Chamber of the HSYK said that the prosecutors were suspended because their actions may "damage the influence and reputation" of the judiciary. The prosecutors will face dismissal if they are convicted. It is alleged that prosecutors affiliated with the Gülen Movement manipulated the Ergenekon coup attempt case, of which Öz was one of the leading prosecutors.

The HSYK report said Öz threatened police officers on December 18, a day after he initiated the operation that has been claimed as a major part of the Gülen Movement's alleged attempt to overthrow the elected government. It was also claimed that Öz tried to influence some of the staff of the Fatih Municipality. The report added that he was involved in a scandal for taking an extravagant vacation to Dubai that was financially supported by businessman Ali Ağaoğlu. He is accused of receiving $20,259 for the vacation. Öz also faced a lawsuit for insulting and threatening the-then Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan on social media, but he did not appear at the hearing.

As for Kara, the report said that he failed to provide the right of defense to those who were detained as part of the December 17 operation. It also mentions that the 3,419-page summary proceeding was not examined.

The HSYK investigators' report stresses that Akkaş carried out numerous irregularities that led to the detention of many people. Suspects were detained while no evidence was found in 22 files, for which Akkaş gave detention requests without examining bags of sealed documents. He is accused of preparing a quickly written indictment before conducting an examination based on evidence. Other than wiretapped recordings, the authenticity of which has not been confirmed, Akkaş was not able to provide solid evidence. The report also says no documents or files were found on the transactions and tenders that were related to alleged corruption.