In our blogpost back in September, we said “When Ayhan Bora Kaplan, a mafia boss was arrested on 7 September 2023, the Turkish public immediately realized that it was a preview of something bigger. Known for his alleged close ties to former Turkish Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu (August 2016 – June 2023), Kaplan’s arrest has exposed a deep-rooted web of corruption, collusion, and power abuse across Turkey’s judiciary, law enforcement and political circles.”
Kaplan’s ascent in the criminal underworld began during the 2016 coup attempt when he and his gang took to the streets with automatic rifles and assumed the protection of Süleyman Soylu. This alliance proved to be fruitful for Kaplan, as Soylu’s subsequent appointment as Interior Minister 45 days later provided him with significant influence. With this newfound power, Kaplan allegedly dominated the narcotics market in Ankara, employed torture as a means of intimidation, and took control of nightclubs through extortion and threats.
Mobster exposes deep rot in the Turkish judiciary
A mobster who admitted to bribing chief prosecutor and police chiefs exposes deep rot in the Turkish judiciary.
Keep readingThe Arrest of Kaplan and His Revelations However, as the political landscape shifted, Kaplan’s fortunes drastically turned. Following Soylu’s replacement as Interior Minister, Kaplan was apprehended at Ankara’s Esenboga airport while attempting to flee the country. He now faces charges of torture and leading an armed organized crime group. The timing of Kaplan’s arrest coincided with significant changes within the police force following Soylu’s replacement by a new interior minister in June 2023. Mobster Kaplan admitted that he bought a luxury car and a villa for then-Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor Yuksel Kocaman (2017-2020) in exchange for dropping investigations against him. Yuksel Kocaman, who is currently a member of Turkey’s Supreme Court of Appeals, admitted that he met with mafia figure Kaplan and that Kaplan asked for his help, and that investigations against Kaplan were dropped. Still, Kocaman claimed that the decisions were based on evidence and denied any wrongdoing. Another startling disclosure came to light when Kaplan alleged that Alp Arslan, the deputy director of the Ankara police, who oversaw the anti-terror and organized crime units infamous for torture, demanded a $250,000 bribe in exchange for not inspecting Kaplan’s nightclubs.
Now journalist Cevheri Guven revealed that Kaplan’s friend (since they were quite young) and co-conspirator called E.G. has become a cooperative witness and exposed further rot involving another senior police chief in Ankara, daughter of the former president of the Turkish Constitutional Court, who is also a senior judge in Ankara.
E.G. in his testimony dated 1 Nov 2023 explains the details of Kaplan’s narco-trafficking activities in Turkey. He exposes the identities and phone numbers of his suppliers and dealers as well as narcotic police officers who protect and make delivery of his products, as well as how much they are paid in return.
Yet these are not the most scandalous aspects of his revelations. E.G. says that Necati Cevik head of Ankara Police Directorate’s Organized Crime Unit, was personally involved in the shipments of the cocaine. He details that Bora Kaplan, Police Chief Cevik and himself three times went to Istanbul from Ankara with a Mercedes Viano model vehicle and brought 10 kg of cocaine to Ankara every time. He adds in one instance, police pulled their car over, but Police Chief Cevik prevented searching of the car by producing his police ID card. E.G. also handed over a video to the police where he alleges Necavi Cevik seems to be receiving money from Bora Kaplan in return for his “service”.
E.G. hands over another video in which according to him two Ankara police called Tahsin and Mesut who work in narcotics police are seen selling two AK47 rifles, Glock, CZ and Colt pistols to a criminal called Sinan Susuz.
Finally, E.G. hands over another video recording to the police in which a senior Ankara judge who is the daughter of the former president of the Constitutional Court is seen receiving a 1 million TRY bribe in exchange for intervening in the appeal of the criminal case in favour of E.G.
Every revelation by a drug lord is a testimony that corrupt police chiefs have long ceased to be isolated incidents and now pose a real threat to not only Turkey’s fight against drug trafficking but also its international partners who depend on that.
Categories: Turkey Human Rights Blog