At least 50 suspects were arrested and more than 50 tonnes of ethyl alcohol were seized during a major raid carried out yesterday by Turkish police in eight provinces of Turkey, including Istanbul, against a network that produced and distributed illegal alcohol made from industrial components. The operation, led by the Istanbul police’s smuggling crimes department, found that those arrested had companies involved in the manufacture of chemicals and cleaning products, which they used to sell ethyl alcohol to others involved in the production of fake alcohol.
Subsequently, the investigation revealed that those arrested also produced illegal alcohol themselves in bottles with false labels. The group, which had set up a cover to distribute the drinks as legal importers of alcohol, reportedly had plans to distribute the alcoholic beverages in prominent tourist sites in Turkey. During the operation, which was the result of a 10-month investigation and took place simultaneously in the provinces of Istanbul, Tekirdağ, Çanakkale, Balıkesir, Izmir, Aydın, Çorum and Mardin, 51 tonnes of ethyl alcohol, 370 litres of alcohol flavouring, 44,773 bottles of alcoholic beverages, 21,375 empty bottles, 18,600 liquor bottle caps, and 10,480 fake labels, as well as all kinds of bottling and packaging machinery, were seized.
VOTE
EDITORIAL TEAM
🧿 About us
.
Edited and reviewed by:
Pablo Gómez is a specialist in Turkey and has been editor-in-chief of Hispanatolia since 2011. He has been analysing current affairs and geopolitics in Turkey and the surrounding region since 2006.
…
📣 Your ADVERTISING on Hispanatolia
.
🤗 HELP US WITH A DONATION:
💗 Paypal
