Speaking to the police during the ID check in Istanbul Atatürk Airport, Richard Demirci said that he is an Armenian from France and he ended up being deported. Police officers asked, “You speak Turkish. How come you are not Turkish?” He is prohibited from entering Turkey with an exclusion order.

As a result of the dialog between French-Armenian Richard Demirci and the police officers carrying out ID check in Atatürk Airport, Demirci was kept in the airport and then taken to Foreigners' Department in Kumkapı.



Richard Demirci's son Daniel Demirci told about what happened to Agos:

“On Sunday, police stopped the car that my father was in and carried out an ID check. My father gave his passport and then the police officers said, “This is a French passport.” When my father said that it is a French passport, they asked whether he is Turkish. After my father said, “No”, they asked, “ You speak Turkish. Your birthplace is Siirt. How come you are not Turkish?” And my father replied: “I am an Armenian with French nationality.” After that, police officers said that he is a terrorist and ordered him to step out of the car. They took him to the place where they keep foreigners. Making him wait there for a while, they took him to Foreigners' Department in Kumkapı. He stood trial on Monday and then deported. He has been going to Turkey once in a month because of his business activities. Now that an exclusion order is issued, he is not able to go to Turkey anymore.”