ANKARA, Oct. 20 (Xinhua) -- Turkish prosecutors on Thursday issued an arrest warrant for 46 suspects as part of an illegal betting investigation and 35 of them are detained, the state-run TRT broadcaster reported.
Cryptocurrencies worth 40 million U.S. dollars were confiscated after simultaneous operations in eight provinces across Türkiye, as part of the investigation against a criminal organization based in the capital of Ankara.
The suspects, including Turkish Cypriot businessman Halil Falyali, his wife and a casino manager, transferred the money obtained from illegal betting to the crypto asset accounts of a criminal organization.
In this way, they obtained approximately 2.5 billion Turkish liras (135 million dollars) of crime revenue, the TRT reported.
Falyali was subject to claims for playing role in money laundering and illegal betting businesses. In 2016, a U.S. court issued an arrest warrant against Falyali in a case concerning drug trafficking and money laundering. In February, he was shot dead in an assault in Turkish Cyprus.
"This operation came out of Turkish Cyprus and is linked to the murder of Halil Falyali. A transfer of approximately 2.5 billion liras of money was determined. Approximately 40 million dollars have now been confiscated. But this is just the beginning," Turkish Interior Minister Suleyman Soylu told reporters on Thursday. ■
