Sedat Peker claims to reveal new cocaine route between Colombia-Venezuela-Turkey
In a new YouTube video, the mafia boss in a self-imposed exile continued making allegations against people close to the government. Former PM Binali Yıldırım's son is at the center of his drug trafficking claims.
Convicted organized crime boss Sedat Peker has claimed to reveal a cocaine trafficking scheme from Colombia to Turkey involving a former interior minister and the son of a former prime minister.
Formerly a pro-government figure, Peker left the country in late 2019, after, according to his claims, being informed about a confidential investigation against him.
In early May, he posted a video where he made serious allegations against current former government officials, including sexual assault, murder, seizure of property and drug trafficking.
Since then, he has been releasing two videos a week and each of his videos has attracted millions of views, setting the political agenda of the country.
In today's video, Peker continued to talk about cocaine trafficking from Colombia to Turkey in relation to the two separate operations by the police of Colombia and Panama where five tons and 680 kilos of cocaine were seized in Turkey-bound ships last year.
After the operations, he claimed, Erkam Yıldırım, the son of former PM Binali Yıldırım, traveled to Venezuela in January and February to set up a new route. He spent four days in the country on each visit, Peker claimed.
"Did he go to the port of Caracas in January and February and hold meetings to lease a private section? If he leased, under the name of whom?" he asked.
They chose Venezuela because the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) has no control over the country and it's easy to transfer cocaine from Colombia, which shares an 800-kilometer long border with it, according to Peker.
"Dry cargo vessels can come from the Caracas Port to Turkey without stopping but container vessels can continue after stopping by Dominica," he said and predicted that many more loads of cocaine will be seized in the Dominican Republic. He later corrected his words on Twitter, saying that he had confused the Dominican Republic with Panama.
Responding to Peker, Binali Yıldırım denied his claims, saying that his son went to Venezuela to "distribute Covid supplies."
"The allegations are absolutely slander, we strongly reject them. Putting us and drugs side by side is completely insulting," he told reporters today at the ruling Justice and Development Party's (AKP) İstanbul provincial office.
He also said Erkam Yıldırım traveled to Venezuela once and it was in December.
Erkam Yıldırım is the third person from right in this photo shared on Twitter by AKP deputy Serkan Bayram, who said that Yıldırım was not in the official delegation and covered his own expenses. He had traveled to the country for social projects, including the construction of the "Palestine Mosque," he said.
According to Peker, after cocaine comes to Colombia from Turkey, it is transferred to yachts in smaller packages and some of those yachts head to the Yalıkavak Marina, a luxury yacht marina in Bodrum, western Turkey.
In his previous videos, Peker accused former Interior Minister Mehmet Ağar of seizing the marina from Mübariz Mansimov, a businessperson from Azerbaijan, who is now under house arrest for being a member of the "Fetullahist Terrorist Organization (FETÖ)," an Islamic group held responsible for the 2016 coup attempt.
Ağar, who currently chairs the board of the company that operates the marina, had said in response to Peker that he had been protecting the marina from the mafia. He had later apologized to Interior Minister Süleyman Soylu for these remarks.
Peker claims the case against Mansimov was a plot against him and it was Ağar who introduced Mansimov to Fetullah Gülen in the past. "Mehmet Ağar is at the very center of this," he said.
Peker further claimed that Halil Falyalı, a businessperson from Northern Cyprus, was also a central figure in the cocaine trafficking scheme, organizing its financial part. The US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) had also investigated Falyalı, he said.
Speaking to journalist Cüneyt Özdemir on YouTube, Falyalı denied that he was involved in any illegal business. But he confirmed the DEA investigation, saying that he saw in the press.
To the interior minister: "I'll put you on a leash"
One of the main targets of Peker since his third video has been Süleyman Soylu, the interior minister. He has claimed that it was Soylu who had informed him about the investigation against him so that he was able to leave the country before getting arrested.
Peker has also claimed that Soylu had promised him that he would be able to return to Turkey in April when "many things would change in the country," which didn't happen. "You were my return ticket," he said addressing Soylu in a previous video.
Police carried out large-scale raids in April as part of an investigation into a crime group allegedly led by Peker.
Peker says that he decided to make videos because of the police's treatment of his wife and children during the raid on their villa in Beykoz, İstanbul. He claims that no women officers were initially present during the raid and some police officers pointed rifles at his children.
Minister Soylu denied his claims during a program on TRT, the state broadcasters, and called Peker "a helpless man who is hiding behind his wife's underwear."
The ministry also released footage showing part of the raid on the villa.
Peker, in response, said, "A little honor... Relax, I wouldn't say such a thing to you."
Later in the video, he said," I'll put you on a dog leash and walk you around the streets ... I won't let you pee on car tires."
What happened?
Sedat Peker had to leave the country in late 2019, for which he had initially blamed Berat Albayrak, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan's son-in-law and the then finance minister, but had later said he had been misinformed about the situation. He says he is currently in the UAE.
Describing himself as a Pan-Turkist, he had become a staunch supporter of the AKP after his release from prison in 2015.
However, since May 2, Peker has been releasing videos on YouTube, where he makes serious allegations against senior government officials and people close to the AKP, including seizure of property, sexual assault and murder.
In the video he released on May 13, he claimed that Soylu informed him about an investigation against him so that he was able to leave the country before getting arrested.
He also claimed it was Soylu who made him turn against Berat Albayrak, the son-in-law of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and the former finance minister.
While Peker said he had "invested in" Soylu since the start of his political career at the True Path Party (DYP), the minister denies he had any contact with Peker. (VK)
Öcalan and the DEM Party delegation at İmralı prison on Feb 27.
Abdullah Öcalan, the jailed leader of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), met with family members on the occasion of Eid al-Fitr, marking a rare visit permitted at İmralı Island Prison. Three other prisoners held at the facility, Ömer Hayri Konar, Hamili Yıldırım, and Veysi Aktaş, were also allowed family visits.
The visits took place as part of the holiday visitation rights granted by prison authorities, Mezopotamya Agency (MA) reported. Öcalan met with his nephew, Peoples' Equality and Democracy (DEM) Party MP Ömer Öcalan.
Family visits to Öcalan have long been restricted. Since 2014, he has been allowed to meet with relatives only seven times. The previous visit took place on Oct 23, following a 44-month period of total incommunicado detention. That visit, which involved Ömer Öcalan, came amid a broader political initiative launched by the ruling bloc in October to address the Kurdish issue.
The other inmates have also faced severe limitations. Konar and Aktaş, both transferred to İmralı in March 2015, have each had only four family visits to date, including this one. Yıldırım has had just three.
Lawyer access has similarly been restricted. Öcalan has had only five meetings with his legal team over the past 14 years, the last of which took place on Aug 7, 2019. Konar, Yıldırım, and Aktaş have not had any lawyer visits since being moved to İmralı.
On Mar 28, the Asrın Law Office, which represents Öcalan and the other prisoners, stated that 52 requests for family and lawyer visits had gone unanswered and called on the Committee for the Prevention of Torture (CPT) to urgently visit the prison.
As part of ongoing political engagement, a DEM Party delegation visited İmralı three times, on Dec 28, Jan 22, and Feb 27, within the framework of efforts to find a democratic and peaceful resolution to the Kurdish issue. After the third meeting, Öcalan issued a call for the PKK to lay down its arms after four decades of armed insurgency. (VK)
Mahir Polat, deputy secretary-general of the İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality, was transferred back to prison after undergoing angioplasty at a hospital. Polat had been remanded in custody along with 50 others, including İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu.
After experiencing health issues on Mar 27, Polat was taken to the hospital from Silivri Prison.
During earlier police and prosecutor questioning, Polat had described his health conditions and requested they be taken into consideration.
He said that he had undergone angiography two weeks prior to his detention and had six stents inserted. “In addition, two of my arteries are still blocked,” he said.
Polat added that a second angiography had been scheduled and that his treatment was ongoing, including a course of medication. “Because I had thyroid cancer, I regularly undergo PET scans to monitor for metastasis. I also live with sleep apnea and rely on a CPAP device. On top of that, I have hypertension and diabetes,” he told authorities.
Polat, who previously overcame thyroid cancer, is under regular cancer screening and suffers from hypertension and diabetes.
Background
İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, along with Şişli Mayor Resul Emrah Şahan, Beylikdüzü Mayor Murat Çalık, and nearly 100 others, were detained during early-morning police raids on Mar 19.
The detentions were part of two separate investigations. The first probe focuses on allegations of organized corruption involving municipal companies, including claims of rigged tenders, fraud, bribery, and unlawful acquisition of personal data. Prosecutors allege that İmamoğlu formed a “criminal organization for personal gain” during his time as mayor of Beylikdüzü, prior to his election as İstanbul mayor in 2019.
The prosecution claims that municipal subsidiaries were used in connection with these alleged offenses.
More than 90 individuals were detained in connection with this invstigation, including İmamoğlu's advisor and Medya Inc. executive Murat Ongun; his campaign manager Necati Özkan; Tuncay Yılmaz, general manager of İmamoğlu Construction; Metropolitan Municipality Secretary-General Can Akın Çağlar; İstanbul Planning Agency head Buğra Gökçe; Culture İstanbul Director Murat Abbas; İlbak Holding board chair Murat İlbak; and shareholder Mustafa İlbak.
The second investigation pertains to what prosecutors call a "terrorism" case tied to a political agreement, dubbed as "urban consensus" between İmamoğlu's Republican People's Party (CHP) and the pro-Kurdish Peoples' Equality and Democracy (DEM) Party in the 2024 local elections.
As part of this probe, detention orders were issued for seven people, including İmamoğlu. Prosecutors allege that some municipal council members and deputy mayors appointed through the CHP quota had links to outlawed organizations, and that sympathizers were employed through İBB subsidiaries such as the İstanbul Planning Agency (İPA) and BİMTAŞ.
Mahir Polat, Şişli Mayor Resul Emrah Şahan, and Reform Institute Director Mehmet Ali Çalışkan were among those detained in this investigation.
Following four days in custody, İmamoğlu and others were referred to court on Mar 22. On the morning of Mar 23, the court ordered the arrest of 48 individuals, including İmamoğlu, Murat Çalık, Buğra Gökçe, and Murat Ongun, in connection with the corruption probe. An additional 44 people were released under judicial supervision.
In the terrorism-related file, the court rejected the prosecution’s request to detain İmamoğlu. However, Şişli Mayor Resul Emrah Şahan, Deputy Secretary-General Mahir Polat, and Reform Institute Director Mehmet Ali Çalışkan were formally arrested on Mar 23 under the "terrorism" investigation. Şişli Deputy Mayor Ebru Öztürk, who was also sought in the case, was taken into custody on Mar 29.
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