İstanbul Chief of Police Mustafa Çalışkan has claimed that Turkey’s crime scene investigation at the Saudi Consulate General in İstanbul concerning the murder of Washington Post contributor Jamal Khashoggi was flawless, the Gazete Duvar news website reported.
Speaking at a ceremony for security personnel who have completed their forensics training at an İstanbul university, Çalışkan touched on the killing of the Saudi journalist inside the Saudi Consulate General in İstanbul on Oct. 2.
Çalışkan claimed that the crime scene investigation carried out by Turkish officials met international criteria.
“Our crime-scene investigation capabilities are more than adequate. We saw it in the case of Jamal Khashoggi. Our investigation was conducted under international scrutiny. We accomplished our job without a mistake. I’d like to thank my colleagues,” Çalışkan said.
Khashoggi’s remains still have not been found.
After making numerous contradictory statements about his fate, Riyadh said he had been killed and his body dismembered when negotiations to persuade him to return to Saudi Arabia failed.
Last week, a UN human rights investigator leading an international inquiry into the murder of Khashoggi said Saudi Arabia “seriously undermined” Turkey’s efforts to investigate the killing.
“Woefully inadequate time and access was granted to Turkish investigators to conduct a professional and effective crime-scene examination and search required by international standards for investigation,” said the UN rapporteur.
Turkey has previously said it was working with other countries on the Khashoggi investigation and has accused Saudi Arabia of not fully cooperating to uncover the murder.
Saudi Arabia has come under heavy international pressure over the Khashoggi killing, including from the United States, its closest ally, whose Senate passed a resolution in which it said it “believes Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is responsible for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi.”
