Turkey Added to ‘Places of Crimes’ in Rıza Sarraf Indictment

Click here to read the article in Turkish / Haberin Türkçesi için buraya tıklayın. 

Prosecutor for Southern District of New York, Preet Bharara has updated the bill of indictment as to Rıza Sarraf and has submitted the indictment to court.  

Prosecutor Bharara, having Sarraf who is a citizen of Iraq and Turkey arrested in the US, has added the expression “wherever these crimes have been committed including New York, Turkey and United Arab Emirates”.

According to the report of Razi Canikligil, New York Correspondent of Hürriyet daily, with the expressions he has added to the section “crimes” of the indictment, Bharara has identified Turkey, New York and United Arab Emirates as the places where the crimes were committed.

“Crime initiated outside of US”

Bharara, submitted the 21-page updated version of the indictment to the official records of the US Federal Justice System on March 30,

With the changes undertaken in the 13th, 15th, 19th and 22th paragraphs of the new indictment, Turkey has been added to the places of offence.

CLICK - SARRAF’S LAWYER: THESE ARE COMMERCIAL ISSUES, ALL EXPLICABLE

The first accusations section of the initial indictment has expressed that Sarraf and his friends had collaborated to conspire against the interests of the US, broke the embargo against Iraq, committed bank fraud and laundered money.

Information may be requested from Ministry of Justice

Attorney Cahit Akbulut, registered in the US District Court for Southern District of New York has evaluated the retouch in the indictment:

“Bharara this time points out to Turkey among the countries in which the crimes have been committed clearly. This could mean a deficiency in the initial indictment or a complementary correction. Subsuming Turkey under the countries where the respective crimes have been committed, indicates that information and documents could be requested from the Ministry of Justice of Turkey during the trial”.

Waiting for the bus for five days

It had been decided to transport businessperson Rıza Sarraf to New York from Miami where he had been arrested.

After being imprisoned at Tallahassee Prison one night previously, Sarraf has been waiting for the bus for five days in his second stop Atlanta Prison.

He is being transported to New York switching prison buses due to “lack of supplies”.

What had happened?

Rıza Sarraf was arrested on December 21 within the scope of December 17-25 corruption and bribery investigation. He was released after 70 days of imprisonment.

Iranian businessperson Babek Zencani, pointed as Sarraf’s partner in Iran was sentenced to capital punishment on charge of corruption on March 6, 2016.

Zencani has companies in Turkey too. Kont Group Cosmetics in Beşiktaş district of İstanbul is one of them. Zencani is also allegedly linked with Onur Air. Zencani’s attorneys in the past few days had stated in the lawsuit they brought in İstanbul that Onur Air belongs to them.

Zencani is associated with Rıza Sarraf frequently during this period. In the report prepared by inspectors of the Ministry of Customs and Trade, a relation between the two has been mentioned. (AS/DG)