MİT ran surveillance upon a tip-off from a neighbor of Karatay who was identified as a key figure within the terror group responsible for the failed coup attempt against the Turkish government in 2016, security sources said on Oct. 2.

The fugitive former judge was dismissed from his profession following post-coup investigations.

Karatay was found hidden among his clothes in a room of his house in the Yenimahalle district of the capital during the operation, the sources noted.

During the search, police seized a laptop, tablet, phone and other digital devices he used to maintain contact with the organization’s senior leadership.

Karatay communicated with the group through an encrypted messaging application known as Signal, according to the sources.

The sources further revealed that Karatay, sought for eight years on charges of «membership in an armed terrorist organization,» was a pivotal operative within FETÖ’s judicial wing, managing to sustain his connections with the network while in hiding.