$30 mln crypto money belonging to Falyalı seized

ANKARA

Within the scope of the illegal betting investigation by the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, the crypto money worth 30 million dollars belonging to Turkish Cypriot casino owner Halil Falyalı, who was assassinated on Feb. 8, has been seized.

Falyalı, a well-known figure in the Turkish Cypriot business community, was being driven home by a chauffeur, Murat Demirtaş, when men with long-barreled weapons attacked the car he was in at the entrance to Çatalköy town of Kyrenia (Girne).

While Demirtaş died at the scene, Falyalı succumbed to his wounds in the hospital where he was taken to.

Main suspect Mustafa Söylemez, his brother, Mehmet Faysal Söylemez, and three others were arrested as part of the investigation launched in Türkiye.

The three other suspects, who were earlier detained in three separate raids between Feb. 9 and 17, were released under judicial control.

The name of Söylemez was often mentioned in a series of murders, shootings and other mafia-related crimes that were committed in the 1990s and whose perpetrators were “mostly” not found.