Turkey has asked Germany to extradite a theology lecturer Adil Oksuz, suspected of playing a major role in last year's failed coup, the country's Foreign Minister Mevlut Cavusoglu said.
Turkey sent a diplomatic note requesting the extradition of Oksuz, who the government says was the "imam" of air force personnel who last year bombed parliament as part of the attempt to topple the government, Reuters reported.
Authorities say Oksuz was detained near an Ankara air base hours after the coup attempt, only to be released by a judge two days later and has been on the run since. Turkish media have reported that he has been spotted in Frankfurt and Ulm and given a temporary residence permit by Germany's Baden-Wurttemberg state.
"We sent a diplomatic note to Germany after the news regarding the presence in Germany of the FETO suspect Adil Oksuz, who is currently at large," Cavusoglu told broadcaster TRT Haber in an interview.
