An Ankara court has prepared a request seeking the extradition from Germany of Adil Öksüz, a civilian defendant whom Turkish prosecutors accuse of helping direct the July 15, 2016 coup attempt.
The Ankara 4th High Criminal Court sent the request to the Justice Ministry for transmission to German authorities, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported on November 21, 2017.
Öksüz is being tried in absentia along with 485 other defendants in the Akıncı Air Base case. Prosecutors describe the base outside Ankara as the command center from which pilots conducted air operations during the coup attempt.
The Turkish government alleges that Öksüz served as a civilian coordinator for Air Force officers linked to the Gülen movement and helped organize the attempted takeover. The movement and Fethullah Gülen deny involvement in the coup attempt.
Öksüz was detained near Akıncı Air Base on the morning after the coup attempt but was released by a judge on July 18, 2016. He later disappeared and has remained a fugitive.
The extradition request was based on reports that Öksüz was living or seeking asylum in Germany. His presence there had not been publicly confirmed by German authorities.
Turkey had already sent Germany a diplomatic note in August after Turkish media reported possible sightings of Öksüz in Frankfurt and Ulm.
