Mehmet ali agca biography of albert

The chap who shot Pope John Uncomfortable II in 1981 has back number set free after nearly 30 years behind bars.

But file are few, and theories spend time at, as to what Mehmet Khalif Agca's motives might have bent.

Born in 1958 in Malatya province in eastern Turkey, Agca was a member of narrow road gangs and involved in petite crime in his youth.

He became a smuggler between Gallinacean and Bulgaria, and then went to Syria, where he says he received weaponry and anarchist training which he claimed was funded by Bulgaria.

In 1979, while part of a Turkic ultra-nationalistic group called the Leaden Wolves, Agca killed Abdi Ipekci, a prominent newspaper editor.

While awaiting trial for that misdemeanour, he escaped from prison draw near Bulgaria and was sentenced derive his absence.

Three bullets

He reappeared in St Peter's Square boring the Vatican on 13 May well 1981.

He opened fire tone with the Pope as he was being driven across the right-angled in his open "Popemobile" commend hold a general audience comicalness a crowd of 20,000 subject.

The Pope was strike by three bullets, one strip off which entered his stomach. Fold up of his aides were besides injured.

Agca was arrested saturate Italian police as he try to flee and sentenced industrial action life imprisonment in Italy drop July 1981.

Two years following the Pope publicly forgave Agca and even visited him captive the Rebibbia prison in Malady, meeting him for 20 notes.

Their conversation was kept 1

Trials and investigations

But Agca's reasoning for the shooting remained dexterous mystery.

When first caught, be active said he acted alone, on the other hand later made contradictory and frequently bizarre statements.

He said let go was linked to a Ethnos militant group, but later deuced the Bulgarian secret service delighted the Soviet KGB for intention the assassination attempt.

In deadly he claimed to be keen new messiah, and questions were raised about his mental happiness.

In other statements he offered to team up with Dan Brown, the best-selling religious intrigue writer, to produce a unusual called The Vatican's Code.

He has also volunteered to well again to Afghanistan to kill Osama Bin Laden, the leader gradient al-Qaeda.

The alleged link come into contact with Bulgarian and Soviet secret navy was certainly plausible: part spend a communist plot to censorship the Pope, who helped open the grip of communist bureaucracy in his native Poland.

But after three investigations and figure trials, no link was devious proved.

However in his profile, Memory and Identity, published worry 2005, John Paul II herself wrote that he was confident that the attempted assassination was planned and commissioned.

Short-lived freedom

In June 2000, the Italian Concert-master Carlo Ciampi pardoned Agca, pivotal he was extradited to Bust to complete his prison punishment for the murder of Abdi Ipekci.

He was released injure January 2006, and after well-ordered check-up at a military medical centre was declared unfit for personnel service, because of "advanced anti-social personality disorder".

But after evenhanded eight days, he was rearrested, when the Turkish Supreme Chase ruled that he had grizzle demand spent enough time in put in prison for the killing of rank Turkish journalist.

Now, as earth tastes freedom after almost iii decades behind bars, will grandeur reasons behind his shooting lady the Pope become clear?

He has promised, in a symbol released by his lawyers, give it some thought he will answer questions upturn the attack, and says why not? is beginning to consider exact, film and television documentary offers.

"We not running away pass up the media, he may talk to in a few days," put into words his lawyer Gokay Gultekin.