OKLAHOMA CITY — Thunder centre Enes Kanter’s father has been detained in Turkey, the country’s official news agency reported Friday.
Mehmet Kanter was detained in his Istanbul home for an investigation undertaken by a prosecutor’s office in northwestern Turkey, according to the Anadolu news agency. He is being sent to Tekirdag province for questioning. In Turkey, people are detained, then prosecutors may seek an arrest pending trial or release the detainee.
Anadolu does not specify the scope of the investigation, but Dogan news agency says it is part of an investigation into connections to U.S.-based cleric Fethullah Gulen.
The father had disowned Kanter for his public support of Gulen, who the Turkish government blames for last summer’s failed coup attempt when nearly 270 people were killed and more than 2,000 were wounded while trying to overthrow Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The Turkish government considers Gulen’s movement a terror organization. Gulen has denied all allegations of involvement in the coup attempt.
Enes Kanter tweeted on Friday about the incident . He called Erdogan the "Hitler of our century," and warned that his father "is potentially to get tortured as thousand others."
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