The fake maps, statues, and the priest stole everything the villagers had.

28.03.2025 17:01

A shocking fraud incident occurred in Tunceli. The scammers led villagers to "discover" statues they had previously buried using fake maps they had prepared. The suspects then deceived the villagers by introducing them to a fake priest, using the pretext of smuggling the so-called historical artifacts abroad, and defrauded them of 50 million lira. In operations conducted across 9 provinces, 25 people were detained.

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In the rural areas of Tunceli, suspects showed maps drawn on old paper pages to some villagers, claiming that there were many gold and historical artifacts in the region. The suspects then had these individuals excavate certain areas marked on the maps.

THEY MADE A 50 MILLION LIRA SCAM

Statues were found in a pot during the excavations. The suspects video-called those participating in the excavation, claiming that a so-called priest, who they said was abroad, would buy the statues. The so-called priest stated that selling the statue in Turkey would be problematic, saying he would buy and sell them abroad for a high price. About 50 million TL was collected from the villagers for the export of the statues abroad. Those who participated in the excavation later realized they had been defrauded and reported it to the gendarmerie.

A SPECIAL TEAM WAS FORMED

Upon the complaint, the Provincial Gendarmerie Command's Smuggling and Organized Crime Fighting Branch teams formed a special team. With the instruction of the Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, the identities of the network members were determined through three months of technical and physical surveillance.

25 SUSPECTS CAUGHT

In an operation conducted in Tunceli, Istanbul, Izmir, Diyarbakır, Mersin, Bingöl, Batman, Bitlis, and Gaziantep, 25 suspects were detained. A large number of statues, pots, SIM cards, a significant amount of money, and weapons were seized at the suspects' addresses. The suspects brought to Tunceli were referred to the courthouse after their procedures at the gendarmerie.