Bozkurt, bureau chief of Atilim’s Iskenderun office, was convicted of membership in the outlawed Marxist-Leninist Communist Party (MLKP), evidently on the basis of his work for the paper. He was arrested during a police raid on Atilim’s offices in June 15, 1995.
Court documents reveal that copies of Atilim-described by the prosecution as “bulletins” of the MLKP-comprised the principal evidence in his trial. The prosecution also said that Bozkurt had rented a house in Mersin on behalf of the MLKP, and that police searching the premises found unspecified “illegal documents.” It is not clear whether these confiscated documents were introduced as material evidence.
Bozkurt was sentenced to 12 years and six months in prison on January 26, 1996, along with Atilim colleagues Fatma Harman, Bulent Öner, and Hasan Abali.