Barons, baronesses caught in anti-drug ops: Minister

ANKARA

Türkiye has conducted its most extensive anti-drug operations with the participation of some 4,200 police officers in 11 of the 81 provinces, the country’s interior minister has said, adding that some drug barons and baronesses were caught.

Making a press conference at 7 a.m. on June 21, the minister said the police units started the raids, named “Eradication Operations,” at 4 a.m.

The prosecutors in the southeastern province of Diyarbakır issued detention warrants for 292 suspects on June 20.

Saying that until the press conference 213 suspects have been caught, Soylu added, “All the top leaders, barons and baronesses, who tried to poison Diyarbakır have been successfully detained. The rest will be caught too.”

According to the file, a drug gang was bringing in methamphetamine to Diyarbakır from Iran and was releasing the drugs across the country.

The Diyarbakır-based operations were held in Istanbul, (the northwestern province of) Bursa, (the southeastern provinces of) Batman, Şanlıurfa, Mardin, (the eastern provinces of) Van, Muş, Bitlis, Erzurum and (the Central Anatolian province of) Eskişehir.

Police raided 205 structures with the presence of some 20 sniffer dogs.

The minister said the “Eradication Operation” dated back to a local operation in Diyarbakır that started on Sept. 21, 2021.

“All the drug dealers, sellers, barons and baronesses were detected in that local op,” he said and added: “[The new op] Was not an easy one. We try to catch them all at once.”

The local media outlets alleged that two female drug dealers were sitting at the “top of the pyramid,” and all the sales and money transfers were made with their knowledge.