ISTANBUL: A Turkish court in a retrial sentenced an Islamic televangelist and cult leader to 8,658 years in prison for leading a long-running sect that accused its members of crimes such as espionage, blackmail and sexual assault. went.
In a trial in Istanbul along with 236 other alleged members or supporters of his network, Adnan Oktar, who published books on Islamic creationism under the pen name Harun Yahya, was first found guilty and given a prison sentence of 1,075 years; However, earlier this year the decision was overturned on procedural grounds.
Wednesday's sentence includes 891 years for crimes committed by him personally and the remaining years for crimes committed by his followers, according to the state-run Anadolu Agency.
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Over the years, he gained popularity in Turkey, especially for the provocative TV shows he aired on his channel. The cult leader appeared on screen surrounded by young girls, whom he referred to as his "kittens", who would profess their love for him and often wore scantily clad clothes while expressing opinions on religious and political issues. Were.
After a police raid on Oktar's villa revealed that he runs a criminal organization disguising itself as an Islamic sect, carrying out international anti-development campaigns through various publishing houses and media outlets, 66 Oktar and hundreds of his followers were arrested in 2018. His TV station was also off air.
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The cult leader has claimed that the case was fabricated and denied any wrongdoing. His Atlas of Creation, which rejects evolution and holds that God created all life in its "perfect" form, was seen on the back of Christine Lagarde, President of the European Central Bank in 2020, as she spoke on the pandemic Spoke at an online summit.
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Thousands of free copies of the book were sent to journalists, politicians and educational institutions around the world. A person with knowledge of the situation said Lagarde had never read the book, but France's education ministry ordered it removed from schools because it "did not meet any of the quality requirements set for classroom teaching". "