Istanbul prosecutor’s office said on Wednesday it had prepared an indictment against 20 suspects over the killing of Saudi journalist, Jamal Khashoggi.
The suspects include the former Deputy Head of Saudi Arabia’s general intelligence and a former royal adviser.
Khashoggi’s killing in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul on Oct. 2, 2018, caused a global uproar, tarnishing the image of Saudi Arabia’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Some Western governments, as well as the CIA, said they believed he had ordered the killing – an accusation Saudi officials have denied.
The prosecutor’s office said the indictment accuses former deputy head of Saudi Arabia’s general intelligence, Ahmed al-Asiri, and former royal court adviser, Saud al-Qahtani, as having “instigated premeditated murder with monstrous intent’’.
It accuses 18 others of carrying out the killing of Khashoggi, a U.S. resident and columnist for the Washington Post, the prosecutor’s office said in a statement.
The indictment was based on analysis of mobile phone records of the suspects, records of their entry and exit into Turkey and presence at the consulate, witness statements and analysis of Khashoggi’s phone, laptop and iPad, the statement said.
Saudi Arabia’s Media Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In December, a Saudi court sentenced five people to death and three to jail over Khashoggi’s murder.
But a Saudi prosecutor said there was no evidence connecting Qahtani to the killing and the court dismissed charges against Asiri. (Reuters/NAN)
