Police yesterday detained rock singer Haluk Levent and 16 other suspects as part of an investigation launched last week into the alleged multimillion-dollar misuse of charity donations.
The İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office said yesterday that the detentions followed allegations that large sums of donations collected on behalf of the Ahbap Association were transferred into the personal accounts of certain suspects including association executives.
"During the investigation process, the scope was expanded after allegations intensified that donations collected due to the earthquake were moved abroad and used outside their intended purpose," the office stated.
The suspects, who include association employees and members, face charges of violating the law on associations, money laundering, and membership in a criminal organization.
The investigation follows previous legal troubles for Levent. Last month, he received a 70 million-lira fine for issuing bad checks (1 US dollar = 47 Turkish liras).
A prominent rock singer in the 1990s and 2000s, Levent was imprisoned multiple times during that period on charges including fraud and issuing bad checks. He regained public standing after founding the Ahbap Association in 2017 to conduct charity work.
Levent became particularly prominent during the 2023 earthquakes centered in Maraş, which killed more than 50,000 people across 10 provinces. Amid deep political polarization in Turkey, he became a leading figure for the pro-opposition public that distrusted state institutions like the Turkish Red Crescent.
Following the disaster, the Ahbap Association raised over 3 billion liras, worth more than 150 million US dollars at the exchange rate of that period.
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Betting with charity money
The prosecutor's office claimed that Levent used multiple bank accounts, including one belonging to his assistant, Yeliz Kaya. Around 120 million liras were transferred from the association's accounts to Kaya’s account.
Authorities also alleged that roughly 990 million liras were spent on legal betting between 2020 and 2026 from accounts linked to Levent, resulting in losses of about 390 million liras.
Levent has previously faced rumors regarding gambling addiction. Journalist Fatih Altaylı addressed these allegations last week after the probe began.
"Even though Haluk Levent had previously been in and out of prison many times due to financial crimes, and constantly experienced economic and related legal problems due to his gambling addiction, he was seen as a well-intentioned and sympathetic person," Altaylı wrote in a column on his own website.
"And the individual at the head of the Turkish Red Crescent had created such a 'dirty' image that the public saw even the gambling addict Haluk Levent as far more trustworthy than the president of the Turkish Red Crescent, and aid began pouring into the Ahbap Association."
Real estate acquisition
In a separate investigation, the prosecutor's office stated that suspects used the name of the Ahbap Association and promises of donations to obtain real estate from victims.
These properties were allegedly transferred first to Yeliz Kaya and later to other individuals, causing losses of around 60 million dollars for the victims.
The prosecution further alleged that funds were transferred from association accounts to personal accounts, certain real estate properties belonging to the association were registered under the names of the suspects, and donations made after the 2023 earthquakes were specifically diverted to personal accounts.
Levent's name also emerged recently in a separate İstanbul-based investigation. Tessy Ramos Correia, a Portuguese citizen who identifies as a sex worker and was arrested in that investigation, reportedly made allegations against Levent in a prosecutorial statement. Levent denied those claims on his social media account, stating that he has never smoked a cigarette or used drugs in his life. (EMK/VK)
