Authorities have dismantled an illegal gambling network involved in transactions surpassing TL 15bn ($341.8m). The operation spanned across 10 provinces, centred in Batman province, resulting in the detention of 73 suspects.
Efforts are ongoing to locate and arrest eight additional individuals connected to the network.
The Batman Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, in coordination with the Provincial Police Department’s Cyber Crimes Branch, discovered that "dirty money" gained from illegal betting and virtual gambling sites in the city was being transferred to various accounts and subsequently moved to cryptocurrency accounts for laundering purposes.
The simultaneous operation took place in Batman, Istanbul, Ankara, Antalya, Izmir, Sakarya, Kastamonu, Nevşehir, Mersin and Diyarbakır, involving 105 teams and 350 personnel.
Legal proceedings are ongoing against the arrested individuals.
Turkey has been stepping up crackdowns on unauthorised gambling operations as part of efforts to address the country’s widespread problem with illicit gambling activities.
Earlier this week, Turkish prosecutors issued arrest warrants for 72 individuals accused of involvement in an illegal sports betting operation that allegedly generated €66m in revenue, according to reports from the state-run Anadolu Agency.
The investigation, centred in the Mediterranean city of Antalya, uncovered what authorities describe as a clandestine betting network operating from three offices.
The Government’s fight against illegal online gambling and money laundering is being carried out via a process of financial disruption as much as enforcement.
According to local reports, the Financial Crimes Investigation Board (MASAK) has been working throughout 2025 to uncover and prevent money laundering via online gambling.
Across the year, around TL 5bn of proceeds from criminal gambling activities were prevented from being laundered by MASAK through the interruption of financial transactions.
Late last year, Justice Minister Yılmaz Tunç outlined measures against illegal betting and online gambling, including rapid intervention, disruption of illicit financial and digital networks and revisions to the Turkish Penal Code and the Law on Misdemeanours
