A Life Destroyed by the July 15 Trap: Captain Fatih EKICI

In the aftermath of the July 15 coup attempt, purportedly as an excuse, tens of thousands of military personnel were dismissed, and thousands were sentenced to aggravated life imprisonment or life imprisonment. Young officers—newly assigned and driven by love of country and duty—were incarcerated for no reason and convicted on baseless allegations.

Captain Fatih Ekici—an Infantry Captain who served as the aide‐de‐camp to the Second Chief of General Staff during the July 15 events—is one such individual.
In the regime‐prepared indictment and during his trial, he faced charges with no evidence or witnesses, including:

· Being listed among those assigned to abduct General Staff Second Chief Yaşar Güler;
· Leaving the barracks freely and departing the premises at 23:23;
· Collaborating in thought and action with alleged coup plotters;
· Executing unlawful orders allegedly given within the coup plan.

Captain Fatih Ekici remained in prison for two years from the date of the coup. At his trial, in response to these allegations, he gave a detailed statement regarding the day’s events:

· He stated that since Major Mehmet Akkurt—the aide‐de‐camp—was on leave, he personally picked up Second Chief Yaşar Güler from his home at 07:30 and brought him to the General Staff Headquarters.
· He noted that General Staff duties often extended past 22:00–23:00, so he continued work accordingly.
· Around 21:06 he felt unwell and went to the restroom, and by approximately 21:20 he realized a large group had entered the headquarters.
· Hearing commands like “get down,” physical struggle, being subdued, and later gunshots, he understood it was an armed raid.
· Since he was unarmed, he told the court he tried to remain calm and waited for things to settle, seeing no other option.
· He stayed in that location until 22:48, seeking to preserve his safety.

Eventually, as the situation took an unpredictable turn, Captain Ekici donned civilian clothes and attempted to leave the headquarters at 23:10; he managed to break a window of a guard booth at the gate and escape.

Upon returning home and better grasping the gravity of the situation, Captain Ekici could not reconcile what had happened. He called Special Forces Commander General Zekai Aksakalli and explained the events, offering to form a team and oppose the alleged coup plotters at the General Staff Headquarters—and declared himself ready for service.

Having had no knowledge of the coup attempt, avoiding it entirely, and proactively contacting the Special Forces Commander to defend against it, Captain Fatih Ekici was nonetheless charged simply because his name appeared—without surname—in an unclear list. (Among General Staff personnel there were seven officers named “Fatih,” and he shared only the first name). Although surveillance footage, witness and defendant testimonies, and HTS phone-record data all showed he had no contact with any conspirators or planners, he was sentenced to life imprisonment.

Captain Fatih Ekici was a model officer who worked tirelessly and selflessly. One evening, caught in perplexing events beyond his understanding, he preserved his integrity and his distance from wrongdoing—but was brutally punished by the court, despite being known to be innocent.

Harun Kılınç

Source

Capt. Fatih Ekici’s defense statement on July 6, 2018, during proceedings under Case No. 2017/109 before the Ankara 17th High Criminal Court.