Rapper Ezhel Acquitted at First Hearing

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The rapper Ezhel, who had been arrested since May 23, was acquitted at his first hearing today (June 19).

Ezhel was arrested on charge of "promoting and facilitating drug use" through the lyrics of his songs and his Instagram posts on May 23, 2018.

Ezhel had his first hearing today at the 44th Criminal Court of First Instance. Ezhel was acquitted of all the charges pressed against him. The hearing of Ezhel was attended by a large number of his friends, fans and artists.

What happened?

Rapper Ezhel, who was detained and arrested on May 23, 2018, faced five to 10 years of prison sentence and a judicial fine on charge of "promoting and facilitating drug use".

In his deposition, Ezhel stated, "My aim in the video that I uploaded to Instagram and Youtube was not to promote the use of drugs. I am a musician, I sometimes write lyrics as well. That is why, I shared such a video. I do not accept the charges."

The attorney of Ezhel also made a statement and emphasized that the news which claimed that Ezhel was caught with drugs were groundless and stated that the charges brought against Ezhel were in relation with his songs and video clips.

After the arrest of Ezhel, the hashtag #FreeEzhel became the first trending topic on Twitter in Turkey. Amnesty International also launched "an urgent action" campaign for Ezhel. (ÇT/SD)