ISTANBUL
An Istanbul prosecutor asked Thursday for further action against four police officers detained in a series of raids as part of the "parallel state" investigation.
Of the remaining suspects, all police officers, detained Tuesday, 13 have been sent to court and 15 have been released, the Istanbul’s chief public prosecutor’s office said.
The investigation is the second major inquiry into police officers who have been accused of conducting illegal wiretapping operations. Officers have been detained in Istanbul, Ankara, Van, Bitlis, Diyarbakir and Igdir.
The anti-corruption operations follow a December 2013 probe which led to the arrest of several high-profile figures including the sons of three former government ministers and leading business people. All those detained in the December have been released pending trial.
Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s government has called the December probe a "coup attempt" by a "parallel structure.” He claims the Gulen movement, led by US-based preacher Fethullah Gulen, has infiltrated the Turkish state and attempted to overthrow the government.
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