Statement on the operation against the Friends Association from the Minister of Justice Gürlek

Minister of Justice Akın Gürlek made the following statements in his statement on his social media account:

"We do not tolerate any attempt to turn the great pain experienced by our nation in the February 6 earthquakes, the sense of solidarity of our citizens and the donations made for our earthquake victims into personal interests.

Within the scope of the investigation carried out under the coordination of our Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office regarding the fate of earthquake donations collected through the Friends Association, the 5th wave operation was launched this morning by our Istanbul Provincial Police Department.

Operation; It was carried out on the basis of the evidence obtained in line with the Ministry of Internal Affairs inspector reports, special audit reports, the financial records and inventory of the association, bank movements, expert examinations and the statements of the suspects who benefited from the provisions of effective remorse.

Between February 6 and December 31, 2023, 4.3 billion TL of donations were collected to be delivered to our earthquake victims, and 4.2 billion TL of this was spent; It was determined that 950 million TL was withdrawn in cash and one of these withdrawals was 500 million TL at once.

It was understood that between February 6 and December 31, 2023, 4.3 billion TL donations were collected to be delivered to earthquake victims, 950 million TL was withdrawn in cash and 500 million TL were withdrawn at once, and a total of 4.2 billion TL was out of the safe.

'NO GOODS OR SERVICES WILL BE PURCHASED IN RETURN FOR SOME EXPENSES'

A total of 1 billion 757 million 547 thousand 770 TL was transferred to 29 companies and 7 private companies; It was determined that no goods or services were purchased in return for some high-amount expenses, personal benefits were gained from the transportation of aid, and some aid was delivered to public institutions less than stated in the invoices.

In line with all the findings, a simultaneous operation was organized in 20 provinces centered in Istanbul to capture 53 suspects. Investigations have been initiated to determine the real commercial activities of the companies to which money transfers are made.

It was determined that hundreds of tents, wheelchairs, electric bicycles, stationery products and various aid materials provided for earthquake victims were kept unused in warehouses in Izmit. Necessary procedures have been initiated to deliver these materials to their rightful owners.

I would like to thank our Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, which carried out the investigation with great sensitivity, our Istanbul Provincial Police Department, which carried out the operations successfully, and all our public officials who took part in the process.

Under the leadership of our President Mr. Erdoğan; "We will continue to use all the possibilities of the state of law with determination against the exploitation of the goodwill, helpfulness of our citizens and the spirit of solidarity of our nation."