Mark Spencer先生於2014年7月31日假座香港君悅酒店召開有關Sledgehammer案件的分享會。高科技犯罪調查協會 (HTCIA) 主席Tony Taylor先生,副主席 Paul Taylor先生,祕書Alan Jeffries先生亦有應邀出席。Mark Spencer先生描述了他為何願意堅持多年為他人付出的心路歷程,以及他一直堅持“做正確的事”信念。他的電子鑑證報告指出審訊證據曾被篡改,因而成功把所有236名在Balyoz(Sledgehammer)軍事政變案中的囚犯,於2014年6月19日在法院裁定他們的權利受到侵犯後得以釋放。
土耳其憲法法院在2014年6月18日裁定237名案件中的嫌疑犯違反有關“電子數據及被告證詞”的權利,繼續承受多年來在鐵窗裡的煎熬。令他們失去的不只是自由,更導致237個家庭中失去親愛的丈夫、父親或兄弟,更失去了經濟支柱,危在旦夕。在Mark Spencer找到強而有力的證據底下且受到全世界公眾的輿論壓力,憲法法院在審判次日不得不接受要求,裁決促使下級法院下令釋放全部236名嫌疑犯,等候再審,有機會重回清白。嫌疑犯中包括主要被告Çetin Dogan及土耳其第一軍團的前任指揮官,而海軍上校Murat Ozenalp 卻於今年5月1日在獄中因腦出血不幸死亡。
在整個審訊前後,Mark Spencer 不斷努力查證案件裡的真相。在調查過程中再三收到電郵、電話及博客的騷擾,但強烈的使命感和責任感推使他堅持維護公義和自己“做正確的事”的信念,尋找證據。隨著他的調查進一步深入,越來越多的證據被發現,以證明237名嫌疑犯是無罪的。
有關於電子證據被篡改的報告使土耳其Sledgehammer案件和Ergenekon(土耳其右翼組織)審訊案備受矚目。Mark Spencer的不懈工作促使法庭責令TUBITAK(土耳其科學技術研究理事會)回答了有關從土耳其海軍司令部查獲到的硬盤驅動器(“硬盤驅動器5號”)一系列的問題。硬盤驅動器5號是Sledgehammer案件審訊的關鍵證據從“土耳其國家研究理事會”回答Mark Spencer提出的問題答案中,已足以證明硬盤曾被篡改。
*請參閱以下新聞,信息以英文稿為準
Arsenal Consulting's Computer Forensics Findings Lead to Release of Former Turkish First Army Commander – Press Release
The Constitutional Court of Turkey ruled unanimously on June 18 that 237 suspects convicted of being involved in the alleged planning of a Turkish military coup called "Sledgehammer" had their rights violated concerning "digital data and defendant testimony." The Constitutional Court's ruling resulted in a lower court ordering the release, pending retrial, of 236 suspects (Navy Colonel Murat Ozenalp died on May 1 after suffering a cerebral hemorrhage in prison) on June 19. Among those released was the primary Sledgehammer defendant Çetin Dogan, former Commander of the Turkish First Army and Arsenal Consulting's (www.ArsenalExperts.com) client.
Arsenal's reports regarding electronic evidence tampering have weighed heavily in the high-profile Turkish trials known as Sledgehammer and Ergenekon. Arsenal's relentless work culminated recently in a court ordering TUBITAK (The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey) to answer a series of questions regarding a hard drive ("Hard Drive No. 5") seized from the Turkish Naval Command. Hard Drive No. 5 is a critical piece of evidence to both the Sledgehammer and Ergenekon trials. TUBITAK's answers to Arsenal's questions confirmed that Hard Drive No. 5 had been tampered with.
Attorney Huseyin Ersoz, who represents Çetin Dogan, welcomed the Commander's release and reflected on Arsenal's role. "Arsenal Consulting has established the importance of 'Digital Forensics' in Turkey. They have been instrumental in educating the public about the tampering of electronic evidence and its impact on judicial processes... for these reasons, Arsenal's contribution to the rule of law in Turkey is undeniable."
Arsenal's work holds great significance for the digital forensics community, as the volume of evidence tampering and the types of analysis required to uncover it are unprecedented. Arsenal pushed the limits of existing tools and methodologies so aggressively that they had to be improved. Some of these improvements are explained in the Digital Forensics Magazine article "Beyond Timelines--Anchors in Relative Times”
(http://www.ArsenalExperts.com/Arsenal-News-and-Events/BeyondTimelines-DFMPromotional-FullSize.pdf).
Mark Spencer, Arsenal's President, said, "We knew early in our involvement with Sledgehammer and Ergenekon that there were serious problems with the electronic evidence which other digital forensics vendors and government agencies failed to identify. We spent hundreds of hours analyzing evidence related to these trials. When it became clear that the defendants could no longer financially support our work, we continued on a pro-bono basis. We have a strong sense of 'doing the right thing' at Arsenal, and continuing our work on these trials was the right thing to do."
Mark Spencer recently presented Arsenal's Sledgehammer and Ergenekon findings at the U.S. Cyber Crime Conference and a Congressional briefing on Capitol Hill hosted by the Turkish Policy Center. Details on additional presentations will be made available on the Arsenal website.
About Arsenal Consulting
Arsenal provides comprehensive digital forensics services to a broad base of clients that includes law firms, corporations, and government agencies. Arsenal leverages battle-tested digital forensics tools and techniques refined through years of research, testing, and design to preserve and analyze electronic evidence in ways that withstand technical and legal scrutiny. Using the most powerful tools and techniques, Arsenal uncovers smoking guns that others simply cannot.