Request for businessperson Sezgin Baran Korkmaz’s extradition to Turkey accepted
Click to read the article in Turkish
Turkey's application to the Wels Court in Austria requesting the extradition of Sezgin Baran Korkmaz, the owner of the SBK Holding who has been arrested in the country, has been accepted.
Murat Volkan Dülger, the attorney for the jailed businessperson who is facing a series of charges in both Turkey and the US, including money laundering, bribery and fraud, has released a written statement on his social media account. The attorney has announced that after the US' request for extradition is examined, the final decision will be given.
Basının ve Kamuoyunun Dikkatine,
— Murat Volkan Dülger (@volkandulger) August 30, 2021
Müvekkil Sezgin Baran Korkmaz hakkındaki son gelişmeleri ve Türkiye'nin iade talebinin kabul edilmesine ilişkin bilgileri saygıyla sunarız: pic.twitter.com/v9RmXHZNge
"As per the decision of the court and Austria's Ministry of Justice, which is the ultimate decision maker, it will be possible for the client to come to Turkey," attorney Murat Volkan Dülger has written on Twitter.
CLICK - US to seek extradition of Sezgin Baran Korkmaz
Briefly about the US indictment
The US Department of Justice previously announced that a lawsuit was filed against Korkmaz for "money laundering and obstruction of justice".
Korkmaz was arrested in Austria on June 19 and was indicted on "one count of conspiring to commit money laundering, 10 counts of wire fraud, and one count of obstruction of an official proceeding," said the press release issued by the US Department of Justice. Korkmaz may face up to 220 years in prison for wire fraud, money laundering, and obstruction.
According to the superseding indictment, Sezgin Baran Korkmaz allegedly laundered over 133 million dollars in fraud proceeds through bank accounts that he controlled in Turkey and Luxembourg.
"The proceeds allegedly related to a scheme by Jacob Kingston, Isaiah Kingston, and Levon Termendzhyan to defraud the U.S. Treasury by filing false claims for over 1 billion dollars in refundable renewable fuel tax credits for the production and sale of biodiesel by their company, Washakie Renewable Energy LLC, in Plymouth, Utah," said the statement.
The US wants Sezgin Baran Korkmaz to appear before US District Judge Jill Parrish of the District of Utah to face the charges.
"If convicted, Korkmaz faces a maximum penalty of 20 years in prison for the money laundering conspiracy count, 20 years in prison for each of the wire fraud counts, and five years in prison for the obstruction count," the statement said, adding that the judge will determine any sentence after considering the US Sentencing Guidelines and other statutory factors.
Korkmaz and bribery allegationsMob boss Sedat Peker, who released a series of controversial videos on state-mafia relations in Turkey in May and June 2021, made some allegations about Sezgin Baran Korkmaz in a video on June 6. He claimed that Korkmaz, the owner of the SBK Holding, visited Minister of Interior Süleyman Soylu at his office one day before he departed from Turkey, despite having an arrest warrant against him. He also talked about a recording of a phone call between journalist Veyis Ateş and Korkmaz and questioned how Ateş was able to afford to stay at a luxurious hotel owned by Korkmaz. Later, Korkmaz said Ateş had asked him for a bribe of 10 million Euro during the phone conversation, the recording of which was released on Twitter by journalist and MP Ahmet Şık on June 21. Ateş claimed that the recording was created by combining parts from several conversations and denied that he requested money from Korkmaz. In the recording, a person who is believed to be Ateş says "a lobby, a clique" was responsible for the investigation against him but he can get away with that if he proves his "sincerity." When Korkmaz asks what the proof is, he replies, "10 million Euro." It's not clear on whose behalf Ateş was negotiating with Korkmaz. |
(AS/SD)