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April 12, 2006
Turkey: Indictment Of Young Islamist Accused Of Killing Catholic Priest
On Sunday, 5 February, 60-year old Father Andrea Santoro, a Catholic priest, was praying in his church in Trabzon, Turkey, by the Black Sea Coast. While the priest was focusing on God, the Muslim world was exploding with rage over the Danish cartoons of "prophet" Mohammed. A 16 year old youth entered the church, shouted "Allahu Akbar" (God is great) and shot Father Santoro twice in the back.
Santa Maria Church in Trabzon was built in the 19th century during the reign of the Ottoman Sultan Abdulmejid I. Father Santoro had just finished holding Sunday Mass when he was murdered.
Three days after the killing, a young man, identified only as O.A., was arrested. He had been hiding at a relative's home in Trabzon when he was arrested at about 3.30 am on February 7. The youth was a high-school student. A .9mm handgun was recovered during the raid which saw him apprehended. The youth was identified following witness reports.
AKI reports that earlier today, Turkish prosecutors have asked for the youth to receive a life sentence.
An indictment was submitted to Trabzon Criminal Court, in which a life sentence was sought for a sentence of murder, one year for possessing a firearm without registration, and a sentence of from 6 months to 36 months for intentionally jeopardizing public security.
AKI states that if the youth pleads guilty to the charges when he goes on trial, his sentence could be reduced, due to his youth.
It has been suggested by Turkish authorities that the murderer's motives may have been to stop Father Santoro's ministry to prostitutes, trying to help them leave their profession. Another theory suggests that the priest was killed because of the issue of the Danish cartoons.
Another theory is that the killing may have been inspired by the media coverage of Ali Agca, the man who had shot Pope John Paul II in 1981. Agca had been released from jail around that time, but was then returned to prison because a miscalculation had been made concerning the time he should have served behind bars.
Posted by Giraldus Cambrensis at April 12, 2006 7:29 PM
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