Turk police warned of editor murder plot -press
Source: Reuters
ISTANBUL, Jan 30 (Reuters) - Turkish police were warned a year ago about a plot to kill Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, media reported on Tuesday, the latest suggestion authorities may have failed to act to stop the killing. The report, carried by several newspapers, comes after the government dismissed the governor and police chief in the Black Sea province of Trabzon, where the main suspects come from. The government has sent two inspectors to Trabzon on the northern coast to investigate whether police and civilian authorities were at fault. "There has been a tip-off that a man called Yasin Hayal, who lives in Trabzon, has said he will come to Istanbul and kill Hrant Dink," Turkish daily Sabah quoted a letter sent from Trabzon to Ankara's police intelligence headquarters. A national police spokesman could not confirm the report. "I can't say whether it is true or false. We are waiting for the report from two investigators sent to Trabzon. They are in full charge of this investigation," spokesman Ismail Caliskan told Reuters. Sabah and and another newspaper, Milliyet, said one of the suspects charged in connection with the murder was an informer who had told police another suspect was planning to murder the high-profile journalist. Hayal has admitted to inciting the murderer, 17 year-old Ogun Samast. Trabzon police passed on the warning to Ankara's police intelligence headquarters and Istanbul police in February 2006. That was the same month an Italian Catholic priest was killed in Trabzon, which Turkish media said was carried out by a youth influenced by Islamist and ultra-nationalist ideas. Since Dink's murder the government has been criticised for failing to deal with extremist groups. Prime Minister Tayyip Erdogan was quoted as saying on Tuesday that Turkey had paid a heavy price for not cracking down on what he called the deep state -- a term which refers to secretive nationalist elements in the powerful Turkish army and bureaucracy. Local media linked Erdogan's comments to the Dink investigation. (Additional reporting by Selcuk Gokoluk)
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