Epress.am News from Armenia
Officials from Turkey’s State Audit Institution (DDK), who have been investigating the 2007 murder of Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink upon an order from Turkish President Abdullah Gül, paid a visit to Dink’s widow, Rakel Dink, two weeks ago and noted her demands from the body with regard to the probe, the Milliyet daily reported on Wednesday.
Milliyet said the DDK officials have so far listened to many individuals who may contribute to shedding light on the murder and that one of the most critical DDK meetings took place with Rakel Dink two weeks ago. During the meeting, which was also attended by the Dink family’s lawyers, Rakel Dink and the lawyers once again expressed frustration over the state’s failure to protect her husband.
The investigation that followed Dink’s death revealed that the police had been tipped off to plans to murder the journalist. Nineteen suspects are currently facing trial in the murder case. A majority of the suspects, including the hitman, are from Trabzon, where the police say they had informed the İstanbul police about the plot to kill Dink on more than one occasion.
In addition to having ignored the tip-off about the plot, lawyers representing the plaintiff are accusing the police of destroying crucial evidence to protect some of the suspects, among whom is an ex-police informant.
According to Milliyet, Gül is closely following the DDK’s investigation and is being briefed about every stage in the probe by DDK President Cemal Boyalı. He was also informed about the details of the meeting with Rakel Dink.