Turkey Arrests Papara Owner in Crackdown on Illegal Gambling
In Turkey's ongoing fight against illegal gambling, Ahmed Faruk Karsli, the owner of digital payment platform Papara, has been arrested. Karsli and others face charges including membership in a criminal organization, money laundering, and gambling law violations.
Papara was used to move funds in and out of unregulated betting and gambling sites. Authorities identified 274 bank accounts and 16 cryptocurrency wallet addresses linked to the platform. Karsli and his associates collected fees for each transaction, profiting from the illegal activities.
This arrest is part of a larger crackdown that began in March. Then, 52 individuals, including Erkan Kork, chair of BankPozitif and PayFix, were taken into custody for aiding illegal gambling. The operation resulted in 709 arrests and 113 suspects questioned, with raids on around 20,000 locations where illegal gambling occurred. However, besides Papara, no other specific companies have been named in this current phase of the crackdown.
Ahmed Faruk Karsli's arrest sends a strong message in Turkey's battle against illegal gambling. Authorities continue to target facilitators like Papara, aiming to disrupt the flow of money to unregulated gambling sites. The investigation is ongoing, with more arrests and raids expected.
