Ogün Samast
Encyclopedia
Ogün Samast is a Turkish
ultra-nationalist who killed Turkish-Armenian
journalist Hrant Dink
on January 19, 2007 in front of the headquarters of his newspaper Agos
, in Osmanbey, Istanbul
.
district of Trabzon Province
. His parents live apart. He had dropped out of high school, was unemployed and may have been a drug user. The Turkish media has also reported that Samast has been described by his family as "calm and withdrawn", whilst his friends have labelled him "aggressive and contentious", pointing out that he had been "kicked off" his local football team for aggression. The report also stated that Samast spent a lot of time on the Internet.
footage of his son on TV. He was detained on Saturday January 20, the day after the murder, in an operation at the main bus station in Samsun
. What is thought to be the murder weapon was found in his possession.
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
announced Samast's arrest.
, he has confessed to the killing and stated that he did not have any regrets. However, several days later it was reported that Samast had stated that he was very sorry that he had killed Hrant Dink. The following Monday, the Turkish police announced that Yasin Hayal
, an ultra-nationalist militant who bombed a McDonald's
restaurant in Trabzon in 2004, confessed to telling Samast to kill Dink and supplying the murder weapon. Ogün Samast's uncle, Faik Samast has said that he did not believe that his nephew had acted alone, stating that he did not know his way around Istanbul. Later, Hayal and Samast confessed that the murder was planned by Erhan Tuncel who is allegedly a police informer
A Radikal story of 2 February 2007 featured pictures of Samast in the policestation where he was initially held, holding up a Turkish flag, flanked by smiling policemen. A police spokesman indicated that an investigation into the video was underway.
. He will become eligible for parole in 2021, after serving 2/3's of his sentence.
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
ultra-nationalist who killed Turkish-Armenian
Armenians in Turkey
Armenians in Turkey have an estimated population of 40,000 to 70,000 . Most are concentrated around Istanbul. The Armenians support their own newspapers and schools...
journalist Hrant Dink
Hrant Dink
Hrant Dink or Հրանտ Դինք ) was a Turkish citizen of Armenian descent editor, journalist and columnist....
on January 19, 2007 in front of the headquarters of his newspaper Agos
Agos
Agos is an Armenian weekly newspaper published in Istanbul, Turkey. It was established on 5 April 1996. Today, it has a circulation of over 9,000. It has both Armenian and Turkish pages as well as an on-line English edition...
, in Osmanbey, Istanbul
Istanbul
Istanbul , historically known as Byzantium and Constantinople , is the largest city of Turkey. Istanbul metropolitan province had 13.26 million people living in it as of December, 2010, which is 18% of Turkey's population and the 3rd largest metropolitan area in Europe after London and...
.
Background
Samast's family is from DüzköyDüzköy
Düzköy is a town and district of Trabzon Province in the Black Sea region of Turkey. The mayor is Salih Bakal ....
district of Trabzon Province
Trabzon Province
Trabzon Province is a province of Turkey on the Black Sea coast. Located in a strategically important region, Trabzon is one of the oldest trade port cities in Anatolia. Neighbouring provinces are Giresun to the west, Gümüşhane to the southwest, Bayburt to the southeast and Rize to the east. The...
. His parents live apart. He had dropped out of high school, was unemployed and may have been a drug user. The Turkish media has also reported that Samast has been described by his family as "calm and withdrawn", whilst his friends have labelled him "aggressive and contentious", pointing out that he had been "kicked off" his local football team for aggression. The report also stated that Samast spent a lot of time on the Internet.
Killing of Hrant Dink
Hrant Dink died after being shot three times in broad daylight near his newspaper office. According to one witness, Samast ran from the scene shouting "I shot the infidel."Arrest
Samast was identified by his father, Ahmet Samast, who informed the police after he saw CCTVClosed-circuit television
Closed-circuit television is the use of video cameras to transmit a signal to a specific place, on a limited set of monitors....
footage of his son on TV. He was detained on Saturday January 20, the day after the murder, in an operation at the main bus station in Samsun
Samsun
Samsun is a city of about half a million people on the north coast of Turkey. It is the provincial capital of Samsun Province and a major Black Sea port.-Name:...
. What is thought to be the murder weapon was found in his possession.
Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan
Recep Tayyip Erdogan
Recep Tayyip Erdoğan has been Prime Minister of Turkey since 2003 and is chairman of the ruling Justice and Development Party , which holds a majority of the seats in the Grand National Assembly of Turkey. Erdoğan served as Mayor of Istanbul from 1994 to 1998. He graduated in 1981 from Marmara...
announced Samast's arrest.
Later developments
According to the official state-run news agency AnadoluAnadolu Agency
Anadolu Agency is the Turkish state news agency commissioned with producing news releases pertaining to the country.The agency was set up on April 6, 1920 by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk during the Turkish War of Independence, and is the biggest news agency of Turkey....
, he has confessed to the killing and stated that he did not have any regrets. However, several days later it was reported that Samast had stated that he was very sorry that he had killed Hrant Dink. The following Monday, the Turkish police announced that Yasin Hayal
Yasin Hayal
Yasin Hayal is a Turkish criminal who served a ten-month prison term for bombing a McDonald's restaurant in the city of Trabzon, Turkey, currently on trial for allegedly inciting Ogün Samast to assassinate Turkish Armenian journalist Hrant Dink....
, an ultra-nationalist militant who bombed a McDonald's
McDonald's
McDonald's Corporation is the world's largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants, serving around 64 million customers daily in 119 countries. Headquartered in the United States, the company began in 1940 as a barbecue restaurant operated by the eponymous Richard and Maurice McDonald; in 1948...
restaurant in Trabzon in 2004, confessed to telling Samast to kill Dink and supplying the murder weapon. Ogün Samast's uncle, Faik Samast has said that he did not believe that his nephew had acted alone, stating that he did not know his way around Istanbul. Later, Hayal and Samast confessed that the murder was planned by Erhan Tuncel who is allegedly a police informer
A Radikal story of 2 February 2007 featured pictures of Samast in the policestation where he was initially held, holding up a Turkish flag, flanked by smiling policemen. A police spokesman indicated that an investigation into the video was underway.
Trial and Conviction
Ogün Samast was tried by Istanbul's Heavy Juvenile Criminal Court. He was convicted on July 25, 2011 of premeditated murder and illegal possession of a firearm. Samast was sentenced to 22 years and 10 months in prison. He will become eligible for parole in 2021, after serving 2/3's of his sentence.