Emsal Koç, who has been residing in Tajikistan since 1994, was forcibly abducted and forced into a vehicle after leaving work on Sunday. It was learned that Koç was taken to Turkey on a Dushanbe-Istanbul flight and is being held in custody at the Erzurum Security Directorate. It was revealed that Koç had been teaching for 11 years at a Tajik-Turkish high school. The Turkish National Intelligence Agency (MIT) had previously brought educators who had served abroad to Turkey through illegal means and subjected them to torture.
Emsal Koç, a 53-year-old who did not return to his residence in Dushanbe on Sunday evening, and for whom a missing person report was filed with the Tajikistan Security Directorate and the United Nations, was found in his hometown of Erzurum. According to a report by Bold Media’s Necdet Çelik, the Erzurum Security Directorate contacted Koç’s relatives and listed the essential supplies they needed for his arrival. It is unknown how many days Emsal Koç will be held in custody.
The photograph has been taken from Bold Medya.
I AM DETERMINED TO SEEK JUSTICE
Firuza Khudoidodova, the wife of Emsal Koç, stated that she witnessed her husband being forcibly placed into a black vehicle by three individuals after finishing his evening shift at a cold storage facility. Khudoidodova said she would submit the evidence her husband collected from his workplace and the surrounding security cameras to the police and the UN.
Firuza Khudoidodova, a Tajikistan citizen, recounted that her husband was seen being escorted by police at Dushanbe Airport. Khudoidodova, emphasizing that her husband, who has permanent residence in the country, was unlawfully taken to Turkey, underlined that she would seek justice.
HE WAS WORKING AT A COLD STORAGE FACILITY
Born in Erzurum in 1970, Emsal Koç graduated from the Department of Literature at Atatürk University. After going to Tajikistan in 1994, Koç worked as a teacher at Tajik-Turkish High Schools for 11 years and also served as a manager at a foundation. For the past 7 years, he has been working at a cold storage facility, supporting his family as a father of three children. Emsal Koç has a residence permit in Tajikistan until 2025.
