Mustafa Pehlivanoğlu (March 3, 1958 - October 7, 1980), was a Turkish ultranationalist militant. He was tried on August 10, 1978, allegedly for shooting four coffee lounges, killing 5 people and injuring 12, and was sentenced to death on October 18, 1979.[1]
Mustafa Pehlivanoğlu | |
|---|---|
| Born | March 3, 1958 |
| Died | October 7, 1980 (aged 22) Mamak Prison, Mamak, Ankara |
| Cause of death | hanging |
Background
editMustafa Pehlivanoğlu was born in Ayaş on March 3, 1958, and was involved in ultranationalist circles.[2] During the Balgat massacre, on August 10, 1978, at around 21.00 in the Balgat district of Ankara, three coffee lounges, usually full of left-wingers, and two coffee lounges, usually full of Idealists, were the target of a drive-by shooting. Five people died, twelve people were injured as a result.[3] In the investigation, it was determined that Pehlivanoğlu and Haydar Şahin, were the ones who carried out the attacks.[4]
Trial, escape, and execution
editOn December 18, 1978, in Ankara, his trial started at the High Criminal Court. In addition to the Balgat Massacre, Mustafa Pehlivanoğlu was also tried for robbing a truck driver for an American factory in Balgat. The prosecutor demanded that he'd be charged with extortion, armed robbery, and murder. Emin Metin, a witness in the incident, said that a week before the massacre, Pehlivanoğlu was the coffee lounge where he was beaten by multiple leftists, and that Pehlivanoğlu said, "I will make this place your graves."[5] He was sentenced to death, and his death file was sent to the Turkish Grand National Assembly. Meanwhile, he escaped from the Mamak Military Prison, despite being heavily guarded.[6] Necati Gültekin, Secretary General of the Nationalist Movement Party, said that he "did not know about the incident and could not comment". Atilla Sav, President of the Union of Turkish Bar Associations, said, "you catch him, you punish him, and then he runs away. When this is the case, the situation that deters the crime disappears." The Prison Director was fired from his job.[7] He was caught in Kütahya on August 16, 1980. In the interrogation, he said that he escaped from prison by digging his way out of the ceiling and wearing civilian clothes he bought.[8] Pehlivanoğlu was sentenced to execution, and after the 1980 Turkish coup d'état when martial law was declared, he was hanged on October 7, 1980, in Mamak Prison.[9]
Idealist sources claim that Pehlivanoğlu was a victim of false accusation, and did not commit the shootings.[10][11][12][13][14][15][16]
References
edit- ^ "Balgat katliamının 2 sanığı ölüme mahkûm oldu". October 19, 1979. p. 6. Archived from the original on October 9, 2022.
- ^ "Mustafa Pehlivanoğlu kimdir? Mustafa Pehlivanoğlu hayatı ve biyografisi!". Haberler (in Turkish). October 7, 2020. Retrieved March 23, 2024.
- ^ "Gazete Oku". egazete.cumhuriyet.com.tr. Archived from the original on October 3, 2021. Retrieved March 23, 2024.
- ^ "Gazete Oku". egazete.cumhuriyet.com.tr. Archived from the original on October 3, 2021. Retrieved March 23, 2024.
- ^ "19 Aralık 1978 tarihli Milliyet gazetesi, Sayfa 9: BALGAT KATLİAMI DAVASI BAŞLADI". Archived from the original on August 12, 2020.
- ^ "Gazete Oku". egazete.cumhuriyet.com.tr. Retrieved March 23, 2024.
- ^ "Gazete Oku". egazete.cumhuriyet.com.tr. Archived from the original on July 29, 2022. Retrieved March 23, 2024.
- ^ "Milliyet gazetesi, Mustafa Pehlivanoğlu haberleri". Archived from the original on November 29, 2022. Retrieved September 28, 2009.
- ^ "Mustafa Pehlivanoğlu kimdir? - Yeni Akit". m.yeniakit.com.tr. Retrieved March 23, 2024.
- ^ "Bahçelievler Katliamı'nın 42'nci yılı". birgun.net (in Turkish). Retrieved October 12, 2020.
- ^ "Biri asıldı, diğeri özgür". www.hurriyet.com.tr (in Turkish). Retrieved October 12, 2020.
- ^ "Balgat katliamı sanığına tahliye". www.hurriyet.com.tr (in Turkish). Retrieved October 12, 2020.
- ^ "Balgat - MİLLİYET GAZETE ARŞİVİ". gazetearsivi.milliyet.com.tr. Retrieved October 12, 2020.
- ^ "'Hafıza Sokağı'nda Abdullah Çatlı'nın emriyle katliam yapan Pehlivanoğlu ile Erdal Eren yan yana". Yolculuk Gazetesi (in Turkish). August 26, 2017. Retrieved October 12, 2020.
- ^ "12 Eylül'de idam edilen Mustafa Pehlivanoğlu'nun anne ve babası konuştu:Günahkarları korumayın". wowturkey.com. Retrieved October 12, 2020.
- ^ DÜZGÜN, Selçuk (October 8, 2015). "Mustafa Pehlivanoğlu`nun Sansürlenen Mektubu! - Selçuk DÜZGÜN". Siyaset Cafe (in Turkish). Retrieved October 12, 2020.