A number of Turkish series actors, singers and influencers were summoned on 8 October to the Istanbul Gendarmerie headquarters to make statements, where blood samples were also taken, as part of an anti-drug investigation led by the Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office which has sparked a major scandal in Turkey due to the involvement of very famous people.
According to Turkish media reports, the persons in question were not arrested but summoned by the Provincial Command of the Gendarmerie to make statements and undergo medical tests. Media outlets such as the Turkish news channel NTV confirmed that the process of taking samples and statements has already begun in Istanbul.
Among the most well-known names on the list, who are said to have made statements and provided blood samples, are the actresses Demet Evgar, Özge Özpirinçci (well known for her leading role in the Turkish series ‘Kadın’ or ‘Woman’), Meriç Aral and Berrak Tüzünataç, or the actors Mert Yazıcıoğlu, Kaan Yıldırım and Kubilay Aka. Also particularly noteworthy are singers such as Hadise Açıkgöz (who represented Turkey at the Eurovision Song Contest) or İrem Derici, as well as well-known Turkish influencers such as Duygu Özaslan and the couple formed by Dilan and Engin Polat.
Lawyers for İrem Derici and Ziynet Sali speak out
Precisely İrem Derici’s lawyer, Ayşegül Mermer, stated that neither she nor her client had “received any official information about the content or the subject of the file. The public will be informed when the process is clearer”.
The profile of those involved has generated enormous media coverage and public speculation, while the authorities remain tight-lipped about the extent of the operation. According to the Turkish press, the list also includes actors Birce Akalay, Metin Akdülger and Ceren Moray, singer Ziynet Sali, lawyer Feyza Altun and influencers Derin and Deren Talu.
Ziynet Sali‘s lawyer, Cemil Cem Eribol, denied rumours of her arrest: “Reports that my client has been arrested are false. Ziynet Sali has never smoked a cigarette in her life, and has no connection whatsoever with this investigation or the persons mentioned. We believe that her inclusion in this matter was a mistake”.
Berrak Tüzünataç, one of the actresses named in the new investigation, was already sentenced in 2017 to 20 months in prison for drug use. Meanwhile, the couple formed by Dilan and Engin Polat, two well-known social media influencers, have also been in the news in the past for their involvement in another anti-drug investigation: both were arrested on 2 March for possession and purchase of narcotics, but were later released after handing over blood samples on the orders of the Turkish public prosecutor’s office.
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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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