Sirkeci, the Ankara bureau chief of the leftist cultural magazine Tavir, was arrested and charged with belonging to the outlawed organization Devrimci Sol (also known as Dev Sol), under Article 168/2 of the Penal Code.
Court records from Sirkeci’s trial show that the state accused him of throwing a Molotov cocktail at a bank in Ankara, but the documents do not state what evidence was introduced to support the allegation. Prosecutors also cited Sirkeci’s attendance at the funeral of a Devrimci Sol activist to support the charge that he belonged to the organization.
Sirkeci said he had attended the funeral in his capacity as a journalist. He provided detailed testimony of his torture by police, who, he alleged, coerced him to confess. He was convicted and sentenced to 12 years and six months in prison and is currently jailed in Sincan F-type Prison.