Turkish police have conducted nationwide raids as part of a cybercrime investigation, arresting nearly 150 individuals and seizing assets valued at approximately $127 million, with charges including illegal betting.
Police in Turkey Conduct Statewide Raids to Combat Illegal Online Gambling Network
In a series of coordinated raids, police in Turkey have arrested 145 people suspected of being involved in various online schemes. Police seized various items during the operation, including unlicensed firearms, hard drives, servers, mobile phones, bank cards, and other forms of digital evidence. The raids were carried out in coordination between the Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office and the Cyber Crime Department of the General Directorate of Security.
Many of the arrested are suspected of being involved in illegal online gambling frauds that targeted many Turkish internet users. However, alongside this crime, the extensive investigation also targeted online fraud, child pornography, harassment, and unauthorized access to computer systems.
The Turkish Minister of Interior, Ali Yerlikaya, congratulated the governors of the 52 provinces in which the raids were conducted, along with the chief public prosecutors who coordinated the operations. Provincial police chiefs and officers, who were the ones who carried out the operations, also received special thanks from Yerlikaya. The Minister of Interior reiterated that the nation’s police force continues to combat cybercrime through its virtual patrols.
How Did the Network Operate?
According to the Turkish police, the preliminary evidence points to a very large and well-organized cybercriminal network that operated across multiple digital platforms. The suspects allegedly used a range of tactics to deceive individuals via social media and phishing websites. These included fake forex investment partnerships, cryptocurrency investment advice scams, gift card fraud, vehicle rental deposit schemes, illegal gambling, bogus bungalow rentals, counterfeit product sales, and digital pyramid schemes.
Investigators also found that the suspects had gathered bank accounts to support illegal betting and gambling activities, and supplied infrastructure for unlawful betting sites. The suspects also allegedly enabled gambling operations and money transfers, and unlawfully accessed citizens’ mobile banking accounts for financial gain. While the investigation is still fresh, Turkish police have currently placed 128 suspects under judicial supervision. It is expected that this number might climb as the initial raids resulted in a total of 423 arrests, and with new evidence showing that the network is quite large, more suspects could be apprehended.