Turkish corruption scandal: prosecutor accuses police of obstructing case

http://www.theguardian.com/world/2013/dec/26/turkish-corruption-prosecutor

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A Turkish prosecutor accused police of obstructing his pursuit of a high-level graft case on Thursday as the prime minister Tayyip Erdogan's government weathered a storm of allegations of corruption and cronyism.

Three ministers have resigned after learning their sons were among dozens of people detained on 17 December amid an investigation into corrupt procurement practices, which has exposed Turkey's deep institutional divisions and left the premier facing a crisis that could prove the most formidable in his 11 years in power.

Erdogan responded to news of the resignations by replacing half his cabinet with loyalists on Wednesday. As investors took fright, the lira plummeted on Thursday to an all-time low.

Turkey's newly appointed interior minister, Efkan Ala, who will be in charge of the nation's domestic security, is thought to be particularly close to Erdogan. The Turkish leader has delivered a series of fiery speeches in which he has dismissed investigation as a foreign-orchestrated "dirty plot" designed to unsettle the country before critical elections in March, and sacked or reassigned some 70 of the police officers involved.

In a letter addressed to the Turkish media, prosecutor Muammer Akkas said he had also been removed from the case, which he described as compromised by police who had refused to comply with his orders to take more suspects into custody.

"By means of the police force, the judiciary was subjected to open pressure, and the execution of court orders was obstructed," Akkas said.

"A crime has been committed throughout the chain of command ... Suspects have been allowed to take precautions, flee and tamper with the evidence."

The statement did not name any of the accused.

Turkey's chief prosecutor Turhan Colakkadi said Akkas had been removed from the case because he leaked information to the media and failed to give his superiors timely updates about the investigation as required.

The government's actions have incensed Turks who see an authoritarian streak in Erdogan and took to the streets in mass protests in yestre.

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