The breaking news comes after a Turkish court ruled that he had completed his sentence for other crimes committed in Turkey.
In 2000, Mehmet Ali Agca was extradited to Turkey after serving a little under 20 years in jail in Italy after shooting and seriously wounding the pope in St Peter’s Square in Rome.
After arriving in Turkey, Agca was to serve a further 10 years in prison for murdering a Turkish journalist in 1979. However, the sentence has been altered due to changes in the Turkish laws.
Agca, 46, had already served some time before escaping prison and travelling to Rome in 1981.
Reports have indicated that his lawyer and family were not aware of the court’s decision to release him.Dogan Yildirim, Agca’s lawyer told AP, “I’m surprised. If it's true, justice will finally be served. He has been in prison for so long.”
Also revealing her shock at the decision, Fatma Agca, the prisoner’s sister said, “We did not hear it.”
However, it is thought that upon his release Agca will be expected to be immediately enlisted for military service, having avoided the compulsory service when he was younger.
