The founder and manager of the popular Turkish band Manifest, Tolga Akış, has been arrested in Turkey as part of an investigation launched by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, which includes allegations against Akış of money laundering, drug use and indecent behaviour.
According to reports from various Turkish media outlets, Tolga Akış, founder and manager of Manifest – one of the most successful bands in Türkiye at present – was taken into custody on the orders of the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office as part of proceedings initiated by the Office for the Investigation of Smuggling, Narcotics and Economic Crimes, and which includes charges against Akış for “obscenity”, “drug use” and “laundering of proceeds of crime”.
The Istanbul Public Prosecutor’s Office issued a statement on the case, noting that “as part of the investigation carried out by our Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, manager Tolga Akış has been arrested on charges of obscenity, drug use and money laundering”.
According to various reports, Akış was arrested at the airport whilst about to board a flight to the city of Izmir. As part of the investigation against him, his home has also been searched.
Serious allegations from Manifest’s former photographer
Mesut Adlin, a former photographer for Manifest, has recently made public several allegations against Tolga Akış, his wife Gizem Kaya and the group itself. In a video posted on YouTube lasting almost 15 minutes, Adlin claimed that Akış interfered in the private lives of the group’s members through the distribution of earnings.
Adlin alleged that the singers in Manifest were forced to sign 10-year contracts, that all revenue from Spotify and YouTube was handed over to Tolga Akış, and that each member of the group received only 10% of the revenue from concerts. He also claimed that it was Akış who determined how much the group members received from collaborations with brands and companies.
Adlin’s allegations also included the claim that Tolga Akış threatened the members of Manifest with disbanding the group if Hilal Yelekçi – a 25-year-old member of the band – did not end her relationship with Agah Uz, a 36-year-old Turkish professional DJ: Yelekçi finally announced at the end of July that she had ended the relationship after coming under intense pressure due to the controversy surrounding their age difference.
Adlin also claimed that he received no payment for the photo shoots he carried out for Manifest. Following these allegations, Akış filed a criminal complaint against him for defamation, which led to the photographer having to give a statement at a police station.
Manifest’s legal problems in Turkey
Manifest, a six-piece band formed in 2025, has shot to fame in a very short space of time, becoming one of the best-known bands on the Turkish music scene thanks to several songs that have topped the charts, as well as their concerts and live performances, which are often surrounded by controversy.
However, Manifest have also faced several legal problems in a short space of time. In December 2025, a court in Istanbul sentenced each of the six members to prison for “obscene acts” and “public indecency” following a controversial concert in the Turkish metropolis during which the artists struck several suggestive poses of a sexual nature; the sentence, of just three months and 22 days’ imprisonment, was nevertheless suspended unless the convicted women reoffend.
Tolga Akış is the creator, producer and a member of the judging panel on Big5 Türkiye, a popular music competition from which Manifest emerged. As well as being the founder and manager of Manifest, Akış is also known for having been married for a time to the Turkish singer Zeynep Bastık, from whom he divorced by mutual consent in July 2022 after just over a year of marriage. Akış is currently married to the Turkish influencer Gizem Kaya, with whom he has a son.
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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.
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