FETO fugitive ex-footballer spotted in US

By Safvan Allahverdi

WASHINGTON (AA) - A fugitive member of the Fetullah Terrorist Organization (FETO), the group behind the 2016 defeated coup in Turkey, was filmed in the U.S.

Turkish authorities have been seeking for Arif Erdem, an ex-footballer, for his links with the FETO terror group.

Erdem was shown in a video footage recorded by TRT News channel, Turkey's public broadcaster, while he was leaving a restaurant with his wife and later getting on a luxurious car.

Erdem, a former Turkish international, first fled to Greece through Ipsala border gate with his wife and two children eight days after the defeated coup on July 15, 2016 and then they settled in the U.S.

He is among hundreds of FETO members being sought by the Turkish authorities over their links to the defeated coup.

FETO and its U.S.-based ringleader Fetullah Gulen orchestrated the 2016 defeated coup which left 251 people martyred and nearly 2,200 injured.

Ankara also accuses FETO of being behind a long-running campaign to overthrow the state through the infiltration of Turkey's military, police and judiciary.