Leman investigation: What did 4 people say in their police statements?

The Leman magazine employees did not accept the accusations in their statements to the police. Doğan Pehlevan emphasized that he meant ordinary people and did not depict the prophet. Ali Yavuz said that he saw the cartoon for the first time in the magazine. Here are the statements of four people.

Four people were detained on June 30 as part of an investigation launched over claims that Leman magazine depicted Prophet Muhammad and Prophet Moses in a cartoon published on June 26.

The detained names are: Editor-in-chief Zafer Aknar, graphic designer Cebrail Okçu, the owner of the cartoon Doğan Pehlevan and the institution manager Ali Yavuz.

Four people were arrested by the court.

Leman magazine employees gave statements at the police station.

Cartoonist Doğan Pehlevan said in his police statement that he had been working at Leman Magazine for 10 years and had a half-page column.

According to the news by Ceylan Sever from Habertürk, Pehlevan said that it used to be weekly but now they do press and publication work every 15 days, “I draw a cartoon every 15 days and give it to the magazine. I drew the cartoon in question about a week ago and sent it to Tuncay Akgün because he is the owner of the magazine. During the same period, I sent it to Cebrail Okcu and Murat Yücesan who do the graphic design work of the magazine,” he said.

Pehlevan continued:

“Director Tuncay Akgün is authorized to publish the cartoon. The cartoon cannot be published without his approval. If there was a problem as mentioned in the cartoon sent to Tuncay Akgün, he would definitely not have published it.”

Doğan Pehlevan, to whom the cartoon was shown and under investigation, was asked, "For what purpose did you draw this cartoon?"

Pehlevan said, “It is actually a peaceful cartoon about people who died mutually, including the Iran War, from the Palestine massacre to the present, and the names Muhammad and Musa are popular names used a lot in these societies. While Muhammad seems like a name representing Muslims, Musa seems like a name representing Jews, so I used it in this cartoon. Also, if we are going to talk about the prophet, we need to use Hz. and SAV at the beginning so that it is clear that he is a prophet. What I mean is that these people are ordinary people who died in wars today. When we look at the cartoon, we will see that the clothes and the place there tell about today.”

Graphic designer Cebrail Okcu said that he has been working at Leman magazine for 30 years. Okcu, who stated that he designed the pages for the magazine, said, “I do not have any intervention other than making sure that the articles and cartoons in the magazine fit into their places and fit them properly on the pages. The cartoon you showed was drawn by Doğan Pehlevan. The drawings are sent to Editor-in-Chief Tuncay Akgün. After his approval, they come to me. Tuncay Akgün gives me the information on which page and in what size the cartoon will be, and I place it. I do not look at the content of the cartoon that comes, I am not interested in its content. I only do the job given to me.”

Saying that he has been working at Leman magazine for 25 years, Ali Yavuz stated that he is the financial affairs manager and said the following:

“I did not draw the cartoon you showed me. I do not handle marketing. I first learned about the cartoon you showed in the magazine at the police station. I do not know who drew this cartoon. I think Doğan Pehlevan drew the cartoon you showed me. I do not know who allowed it to be published. I know Tuncay Akgün as the one who oversees the magazine. Although I appear as the director of the institution, I handle financial affairs. I have no interest in other matters. I cannot handle other matters due to my age.”

Following the lynching campaign launched on social media for allegedly depicting the Prophet Muhammad and Prophet Moses, an investigation was launched against the Leman magazine, and a group attacked the magazine's building on June 30.

Justice Minister Yilmaz Tunc announced that an investigation has been launched due to the cartoon. The cartoonist, graphic designer, editor-in-chief and institution manager were detained, and a decision was made to confiscate the issue in question.

Those who claimed that the cartoon depicted the Prophet Muhammad targeted Leman. After the cartoon spread on social media and the reactions increased, a group gathered at the call of the Great East Raiders Association, which has an extension of IBDA-C, and attacked the magazine's building.

The group that came in front of the magazine chanted slogans such as “Ya Allah, bismillah, Allahu akbar”, “Down with secularism, long live sharia”, “Infidel Leman will be held accountable”, “Kemalist dogs will be held accountable”.

Four people were detained as part of an investigation launched into the magazine on charges of “publicly insulting religious values.”

After undergoing a health check-up at Bayrampaşa State Hospital, the magazine's editor-in-chief Zafer Aknar, graphic designer Cebrail Okçu, the owner of the cartoon Doğan Pehlevan and the institution's manager Ali Yavuz were taken to the Istanbul Courthouse in Çağlayan.

Four people, including cartoonist Doğan Pehlevan, were referred to the judge with a request for arrest.

An arrest request was made for Pehlevan on charges of “inciting the public to hatred and hostility or humiliating” and “insulting the president,” and for the other three suspects on charges of “inciting the public to hatred and hostility or humiliating.”

The reason for the “insulting the president” charge against Doğan Pehlevan is the two X posts he made in July 2019 and November 2024.