Turkey sets free man charged with killing Russian pilot
Xinhua, May 10, 2016 Adjust font size:
A Turkish public prosecutor in Izmir dropped all charges against a Turkish man on Monday, who was charged with killing the pilot of a Russian fighter jet, which was downed by Turkey in November 2015, Anadolu Agency reported Tuesday.
The prosecutor decided to drop charges against Alparslan Celik who had been remanded in custody for 37 days, security sources told media.
Celik said he was the one who told his men not to fire at the parachuting pilot. After examining the video evidence, the prosecutor decided to drop the case.
On March 31, Turkish security forces had apprehended 14 people, including Celik in a restaurant in Hatay province. A long-barreled Kalashnikov rifle and two handguns were seized during the operation.
Celik and 13 other suspects were detained for "violation of firearms law" and sent to the Homicide Bureau of the Izmir Police Department.
Following the downing of a Russian fighter jet on Nov. 24, relations between the two countries soured rapidly. One of the jet's two pilots had been killed while the other was rescued by Russian forces. Endit