* Photo: Anadolu Agency (AA) - Nicosia
Click to read the article in Turkish
Northern Cyprus Police Director General Ahmet Soyalan held a press conference yesterday (February 21) and spoke about the murder of 'betting and casino tycoon' Halil Falyalı in Northern Cyprus.
The police directors and officials who participated in the investigation also accompanied Soyalan during the press conference.
Soyalan announced that 11 people in total, eight in Turkey and three in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus (TRNC), have been arrested over the killing of Falyalı and his driver Murat Demirtaş.
As reported by Cyprus-based online news portal "Gazedda", Police Director Ahmet Soyalan indicated that according to the available strong evidence that the police have, there were at least three people at the scene of the incident when the murder was committed.
According to Soyalan, "nearly 300 people have been asked for information as part of the investigation and nearly 100 statements that would shed light on the investigation have been obtained."
Referring to different scenarios put forward following the murder, Soyalan said that when the murder was committed, Halil Falyalı and his driver Murat Demirtaş were in Falyalı's vehicle while he had only two guards in the vehicle coming in the back. Speaking about the allegations that "after the murder was committed, the perpetrators left the island in a speedboat, Soyalan said, "There is no such a possibility or finding."
According to Soyalan, "it is still investigated how and where the murder weapons were brought in the country." The allegations that "the city surveillance cameras in the country are managed by Turkey and some footage about the murder was shared with the media in Turkey, rather than the Northern Cypriot press" do not reflect the truth, added Soyalan further.
CLICK - Accused of drug trafficking, casino tycoon Halil Falyalı assassinated in Northern Cyprus
Sedat Peker videosSedat Peker, an exiled mob boss who released a series of video confessions in mid-2021, had described Falyalı as a key figure in cocaine trafficking between Colombia and Turkey. He had also been investigated by the US Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), Peker said in a video he released in May 2021. Falyalı had admitted the DEA investigation but denied involvement in any illegal business. Court cases against FalyalıIn 2010, Halil Falyalı stood trial and was put on remand on charge of "threat." Falyalı was later released. He was also remanded in custody in October on charges of "battery," "robbery" and "false imprisonment." According to the allegations, Falyalı forced an employee of his casino whom he accused of stealing money from the safe to sign a trust deed. The man was abducted and beaten. After an arrest warrant was issued against him, Falyalı and three people with him turned themselves in. He was initially put on remand for three days and it was later extended to 70 days. On October 20, newspapers in Northern Cyprus reported that Falyalı was hospitalized because of a heart condition. Falyalı and his three men were released in December after the plaintiffs withdrew the lawsuit. There was also an ongoing case against Falyalı in the US. 'Politicians protected him'Mustafa Akıncı, the former president of Northern Cyprus, said after Peker's claims that Falyalı was "protected" by his allied politicians, the ruling National Unity Party (UBP). "Everyone knows that he supports UBP with all his financial means in elections at all levels. It is also known that there are allegations that Halil Falyalı has connections with various dirty and illegal relations," Akıncı had said. BlackmailingAfter Falyalı's reported release to the hospital, journalist Erk Acarer claimed that he had a massive archive containing "inappropriate videos" of bureaucrats and politicians he used them to blackmail those people. Acarer said Northern Cyprus PM Ersan Saner was among them and he had seen a video of him. |
(AEK/SD)
