A controversial Muslim televangelist and cult leader was sentenced to over 1,000 years in prison for 10 separate crimes by a Turkish court in Istanbul on Monday (January 11). Adnan Oktar is the head of a cult that is considered a criminal organization by prosecutors. The 64-year-old Oktar and dozens of his followers were arrested in simultaneous nationwide raids in 2018.
The court found him guilty of forming a criminal gang and sexual abuse of minors, among several other offenses. Oktar preached conservative views while women he called his “kittens” — many of whom appeared to have had plastic surgery — danced around him in the TV studio.
He was sentenced to 1,075 years for crimes including sexual assault, sexual abuse of minors, fraud and attempted political and military espionage, the private NTV broadcaster reported. Some 236 suspects have been on trial in the case, 78 of whom are under arrest, according to the official Anadolu news agency.
The hearings have…