Court Refuses Testimony of Dink Hitman’s Father

The İstanbul 14th High Criminal Court, which is hearing the trial of the suspects accused of killing Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, has turned down a request from Dink family lawyers to hear the testimony of the hitman’s father in court, reports Today’s Zaman.

Ogün Samast was 17 at the time he shot Dink outside the office of Turkish-Armenian bilingual publication Agos, where Dink was the editor-in-chief, on Jan. 19, 2007. His father, Ahmet Samast, during his interrogation by police shortly after the murder and before Samast was captured, stated that “his commander would know best where Ogün might be hiding.”

Lawyers for the Dink family have requested to hear Ahmet Samast’s testimony in court to learn more information about this mysterious commander who apparently had ties with Samast, who was then a teenager with no apparent ties to the military. However, the court turned down the request on the grounds that Ahmet Samast’s testimony “would not contribute to the investigation.”