Enes Kanter, Knicks Center, Faces Jail Time In Turkey For Insulting Leader

New York Knicks center Enes Kanter could face four years in prison in his native Turkey for insulting the country’s leader.

Turkey’s state-run news service, Anadolu Agency, reported that prosecutors sought four or more years for the NBA player for insulting President Recep Tayyip Erdogan. The Knicks host the Boston Celtics on Friday night so he would have to be tried in absentia.

Kanter, 25, was born in Zurich, Switzerland to Turkish parents, and has lived in the U.S. since 2009. He has harshly criticized Erdogan a number of times including in a series of tweets in May and June 2016. On Wednesday, Kanter posted a video on Twitter from Vice News that explained his opposition to Erdogan and his appreciation for Turkish preacher Fethullah Gulen.

Kanter was detained in Romania in May because his Turkish passport was canceled, according to the Associated Press. Kanter was able to return to the U.S. when American officials intervened.

He said there was a warrant out for his arrest in Turkey. Kanter posted a video during the incident and called Erdogan a “dictator” and “the Hitler of our century.” In November, Kanter tweeted out a photo of himself with his Turkish passport tagging Erdogan and hashtagging the picture “Dictator Erdogan.”

Kanter remains an admirer of Gulen, who has lived in self-imposed exile in the U.S. since 1999 and was blamed by the Turkish government for being behind the coup attempt against Erdogan in July 2016. Gulen is currently on Turkey’s most wanted terrorist list.

Erdogan sees Gulen as his chief political rival and has called for his extradition back to Turkey. Former national security adviser Michael Flynn had reportedly been involved in a kidnapping plot to bring the cleric back to Turkey. Flynn has denied the charge.