Evren, the former news director of Nokta magazine, was handed down a prison sentence of 6 years and 3 months 

The final hearing in the trial of jailed journalist İsmail Evren on the charge of “membership of a terrorist group” took place on 15 January 2020 at the 29th High Criminal Court of Istanbul.

Evren, the former news director of Nokta magazine, which was closed down in 2016 under a statutory decree, was jailed pending trial on 4 January 2019 as part of this case. He had been in the Silivri No. 3 L Type Prison since. He is accused of being a member of the “Fethullahist Terrorist Organization” (FETÖ), which the government accuses of staging 2016’s failed coup.

This was the fourth hearing in the trial. Evren and his lawyer Aziz Genç were in attendance.

The prosecutor addressed the court first, saying that they reiterated their final opinion, submitted to the court on 6 December 2019.

Evren and his lawyers presented their final defense statement, which was also submitted to the court in written form.

After hearing the final statements, the court panel announced their verdict, sentencing Evren to 6 years and 3 months in prison on the charge of “membership of an armed terrorist organization” under Article 314/2 of the Turkish Penal Code (TCK). The court initially sentenced Evren to 5 years in prison. Evren’s sentence was then increased by half pursuant to Article 5/1 of the Law on the Fight against Terrorism (TMK), and was later decreased by ⅙ taking into consideration his “social and economic status, his conduct during the proceedings and the probable effects of the sentence on his future life.”

Taking into consideration the time he spent in pre-trial detention, the court ruled to release Evren and to impose on him an international travel ban.

Evren was released from Silivri Prison the same day.