A Turkish leftist chants slogans for Turkish comedian Deniz Goktas, who has been detained and brought before the court, holding a banner reading ?Deniz Goktas not alone? in front of the Caglayan Courthouse on Jul. 3, 2026. (Credit: Yasin Akgul/AFP)
Turkish prosecutors on Friday said they had charged a popular comedian with insulting President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and other offences during a stand-up performance in June that, if proven, could see him jailed for years.
Deniz Goktas, a 32-year-old comedian known for his dry wit and political satire, was arrested by police in early July a week after he released a YouTube video of his performance, that was watched nearly nine million times.
He has been held in pre-trial detention ever since.
Initially accused of insulting Erdogan and incitement to public hatred, Goktas was last week hit with the additional charge of praising crime and criminals, according to a copy of the Sept. 3 indictment which was seen by AFP on Friday.
His arrest was the latest in a widening crackdown on anyone seen as critical of Turkey's Islamo-conservative government or its values that have netted hundreds of politicians, artists, musicians and journalists among others.
Although the indictment did not clearly outline the sentence, calculations by the Turkish media suggested that if convicted on all charges, he could face up to a decade or more behind bars, Anka news agency reported, with other outlets giving a similar figure.
The first hearing has been scheduled for Sept. 28.
In the indictment, prosecutors says some of the statements Goktas made about Erdogan in his show "exceeded the limits of criticism and were of a nature to damage the president's honour, dignity and reputation in society."
He also made jokes about fasting suicide bombers and women wearing modest swimwear that prosecutors said "openly incited" against a religious sector of the public, that were "divisive and polarising in nature."
And on the third charge, they pointed to a joke about hiring a contract killer through Telegram in which he mentions a criminal gang that they said "praised, legitimised and facilitated access to criminal acts."
The third charge was added on Aug. 28.
Goktas — who said he was on holiday abroad at the time the investigation was opened — flew back to Turkey on Jul. 2 and was arrested at the airport.
Turkish media said the Ankara-born comedian began his career in stand-up at Istanbul's TuzBiber comedy club in 2019. He has since gone on to perform at venues across Europe and the U.S.
