Turkish Islamist televangelist Oktar was sentenced today by an Istanbul court to 1,075 years in prison. According to the report, he ran a “cult” for decades, and his followers were accused of sexual assault, extortion, money laundering and espionage, among other crimes.
The Anadolu Agency reports that Adnan Oktar was sentenced today by a criminal court in Istanbul to 1,075 years and three months in prison for 10 counts, along with 235 other defendants.
His charges included founding and leading a criminal organization, aiding the Glenn Terrorist Organization (FETO), sexually abusing minors, sexual assault, depriving others of their liberty, torture, violating the right to education, recording personal data, and making threats.
The report noted that Oktar, a 64-year-old cult leader who owned a TV channel, was arrested in 2018 along with 200 other accomplices on charges of sexual assault and kidnapping of minors.
A News TV station reported that Oktar always surrounded himself with scantily clad women as he spoke on religious and political issues. After his arrest, the channel was shut down.
“The Hurriyet Daily News reported that Oktar also goes by the pseudonym Harun Yahya. He also published a book on Islamic creationism under the pseudonym Harun Yahya.
His book “The Atlas of Creation” claims to have “scientifically” disproved the theory of evolution. Christine Lagarde, president of the European Central Bank (ECB), had the book on her bookshelf last year when she participated by video in a conference on the 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak, commonly known as Wuhan pneumonia.
It is understood that the book was widely sent to politicians, journalists and schools around the world, and that Lagarde may not have read it.
Another defendant, Tarkan Yavas, who held an executive position in the organization, was sentenced to 211 years for sexual assault of a minor, sexual assault, misrepresentation of assets and perjury in official documents. Another member of the organization, Oktar Babuna, was sentenced to 186 years in prison.
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