Turkish mayor suggests Gulen plotting earthquake to harm economy

FILE PHOTO: U.S. based cleric Fethullah Gulen at his home in Saylorsburg, Pennsylvania, U.S. July 29, 2016. REUTERS/Charles Mostoller/File Photo

ISTANBUL (Reuters) - The mayor of Ankara suggested on Tuesday that the U.S.-based cleric blamed for last year's failed coup might now be plotting an earthquake, with the help of foreign powers, to damage the Turkish economy.

Melih Gokcek said investigations needed to be carried out on a "seismic vessel" which had been in the vicinity of the Aegean coastal town of Canakkale on Monday when a small earthquake struck, the latest in a series of tremors in recent days.