ISTANBUL (Reuters) – Dozens of Turkish police officers, including a former chief of a police financial unit, were detained on Monday in a fresh wave of arrests over allegations that officers were involved in plotting against the government, local media said.
Arrest warrants were issued for 33 police “seeking to overthrow the government”, broadcaster NTV reported. [eap_ad_1] The police force was not immediately available to comment.
Dozens of police have been remanded in custody since July on charges that they formed a criminal organization and bugged phones, part of what new President Tayyip Erdogan has described as a plot against him.
The latest detentions came after Ahmet Davutoglu took over from Erdogan as prime minister last week following Erdogan’s victory in the country’s first direct presidential election on Aug. 10.
Erdogan accuses U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gulen of using a network of followers, who have influence in the police, judiciary and other institutions, to try to oust him. Gulen denies plotting against the state.
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