The police detained 59 suspects during raids on several locations in İstanbul as part of an investigation into illegal betting operations. Forty-nine of them, including businessperson Erkan Kork, the owner of Flash TV, Pozitifbank, and Payfix, have been remanded in custody.

The suspects face charges of “forming a criminal organization,” “money laundering,” and violating Law No. 7258 on the Regulation of Betting and Games of Chance in Football and Other Sports Competitions in the investigation conducted by the İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office

According to the prosecutors, Kork entered the financial sector in 2014 by founding "Troyin Bilişim" and later established "Payfix Payment" to launder illegal betting revenues. Kork allegedly integrated illegal betting platforms into Payfix’s financial software, enabling several foreign-based virtual betting sites to operate in Turkey.

Reports from the Financial Crimes Investigation Board (MASAK) and the Central Bank identified 855 accounts linked to illegal betting within Payfix’s database. These accounts were involved in 80,011 separate financial transactions.

Over 115 million dollars laundered

Investigators found that between Aug 21 and Oct 19, 2023, a total of 4.22 billion lira (~115 million US dollars) was transferred from these accounts to cryptocurrency service providers through 49.67 million transactions.

The prosecution alleges that Kork and his associates used these laundered funds to acquire Pozitifbank and later expanded their financial network by founding companies such as Capital Türk Holding, Aypara Payment Institution, and Ininal.

As part of the investigation, authorities seized assets linked to the illegal betting network, including 17 residential properties, nine plots of land, one office, and 13 vehicles, as well as personal bank accounts and cryptocurrency wallets belonging to the suspects.

Additionally, 23 companies and their 114 associated vehicles were confiscated, along with corporate partnership shares and company cryptocurrency wallets. The total financial impact of the seized assets is estimated at 6.9 billion lira.

Controversial acquisition

Flash TV, one of the assets linked to Kork, has also been at the center of controversy.

On Nov 25, 2024, Cafer Mahiroğlu, the owner of Halk TV, announced that he had purchased Flash TV and its associated website, flashhabertv.com.tr. However, on Dec 31, 2024, Mahiroğlu declared that the sale had not been finalized and that he had not received a refund for the payment he made. He claimed the transaction was halted due to political pressure.

Following the cancellation of the sale Kork acquired Flash TV. The channel underwent a restructuring, hiring journalists such as Ersoy Dede and Rojda Altıntaş. However, Altıntaş, who joined the station on Jan. 11, was dismissed on Feb 28. She claimed that her termination was ordered by Saadet Oruç, a chief advisor to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan. (HA/VK)