The İstanbul 14th Criminal Court of First Instance convicted the comedian Deniz Göktaş, 32, on 28 September 2026 and ordered his release with the judgment. He had been held for 88 days. Because of courtroom capacity, the hearing was held in the İstanbul 4th Assize Court building at the Çağlayan courthouse, before the same judge and prosecutor.

He was sentenced to 11 months and 20 days for insulting the president and 7 months and 15 days for denigrating the religious values of a section of the public, a total of 1 year 7 months and 5 days. He was acquitted of praising crime and criminals. The court imposed a travel ban. A final decision rests with the appeal court.

The indictment, prepared by the Press Crimes Investigation Bureau of the İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, had charged him with publicly inciting hatred and enmity. The court held that the elements of that offence were not made out and reclassified the conduct as denigrating religious values. Prosecutors had sought up to twelve years.

At the hearing, the prosecutor’s closing opinion asked both for conviction and for his release.

The case concerns his stand-up show “Ölü Deniz”, which was viewed more than 15 million times on YouTube and circulated widely on other platforms. Prosecutors singled out a line in which he described the president as a shy dictator. Göktaş told the court that dictator is not an insult but a political characterisation, and that his words fell within the bounds of humour and satire.

In his defence he said that three sentences from the show had been treated first as denigrating religious values and then as the basis for his detention on a charge of inciting hatred and enmity, and that the evidence offered for incitement was 185 complaints submitted to the Presidency’s public communication portal. He said that on the day the show reached four million views, there had been one complaint.

He said he had returned to Turkey of his own accord after learning that a warrant had been issued for him, and that instead of deleting the video of the show he had shared it from his own accounts. He was detained at İstanbul airport in early July on his return from holiday, and held at Çorlu Karatepe High Security Prison. He said 66 of his days in custody were spent in a single cell, and that his only contact with the outside world was one telephone call a week.

He told the court that three months had been taken from his life, adding that he had given up smoking and would add three months back. The remark drew laughter and applause in the courtroom.

Supporters gathered outside the Çağlayan courthouse during the hearing. He was released that evening and met by his family.

Speaking to reporters afterwards, Göktaş said there were thousands of others in prisons across Turkey, some in pre-trial detention like him and others convicted because of their views, and that he hoped for a day when everyone could regain their freedom together.

A court found that a comedian’s routine did not incite hatred, having kept him in custody for 88 days on that basis, and convicted him instead on a charge the same material had already been examined under.