11.10.2025 19:57
The indictment has been completed in the investigation initiated on the allegation that Papara facilitated the crime of "illegal gambling." The indictment states that approximately 12 billion TL of illegal gambling money flowed through Papara within a period of 2 years. It requests prison sentences ranging from 28 years for 25 suspects, including the company's owner, Ahmed Faruk Karslı.
The investigation conducted by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office regarding the allegation that Papara Electronic Money Inc. facilitated illegal betting money traffic and that illegal betting organizations carried out money transfers through Papara has been completed.
INDICTMENT AGAINST 25 SUSPECTS The prepared indictment states that the Sports Toto Organization, as the "victim of the crime," included 25 individuals, including Papara's Chairman Ahmed Faruk Karslı, as "suspects," and 21 companies as "jointly liable."
The indictment mentions that a significant portion of the accounts opened at Papara Electronic Money and Payment Institution was used in illegal betting sites. It was noted that open-source research indicated that these sites belonged to individuals known as betting barons, such as Veysel Ş, Derkan B, and Anıl U, and that the organization cooperated with these individuals, despite Papara's area of activity being payment services, the high volume of bank transfer transactions drew attention.
MONEY LAUNDERING SUSPICION The indictment states that Papara was in a secret agreement process with illegal betting organizations, and the report sent by MASAK indicated that the company's owner, Ahmed Faruk Karslı, was seen transferring money abroad, consolidating his companies under the newly established "PPR Holding Inc." to gain a commercial appearance, and that he legitimized criminal income through transactions at Papara Electronic Money Inc., which strengthened the suspicion of money laundering.
In the statement of the confidential witness codenamed Ladin, it was reported that most of the financial transactions of the betting sites integrated with Papara were conducted by creating a panel. The indictment emphasized that communications related to the panel were found on the phone of suspect Murat Arslan, who was involved in the establishment of Papara and is a partner in the company, and that the evidence corroborated the statements of the confidential witness.
The indictment noted that in the evaluations regarding Karslı, the owner of Papara, it was expressed that he was the leader of the organization and that the suspect did not share the password of his mobile phone with law enforcement.
CENTRAL BANK REPORT: TRANSACTION VOLUME 12 BILLION TL It was stated in the indictment that the company's employees acted in accordance with Karslı's instructions, and according to the Central Bank's audit report, between 2021-2023, the number of e-money accounts closed due to illegal betting activities was 21,088, which corresponded to 94.4% of the accounts closed in the sector. It was also noted that approximately 26,012 accounts were used in illegal betting sites during this period.
The indictment detailed that these accounts had a transaction volume of approximately 12 billion lira during the relevant dates, that the accounts were used in about 102 different illegal betting sites, and that the money was sent from Papara accounts to 274 different bank accounts, and from there to 5 different identifiable cryptocurrency wallet addresses.
The indictment stated that the money transfers to Karslı's wife, mother, and siblings between 2020-2025 were found to be noteworthy, with a total amount of 120 million lira shared.
Ahmed Faruk Karslı REQUESTS FOR PUNISHMENT The indictment requested that the organization leader Ahmed Faruk Karslı and the organization executives, suspects İlker Diker, Taylan Özgür Kiraz, Emre Kenci, Cenab Doğru, and Cengiz Sevim be sentenced to imprisonment ranging from 13 to 28 years for the crimes of "establishing an organization for the purpose of committing a crime," "money laundering of assets derived from crime," "violation of the Misdemeanor Law No. 5326," and "violation of the Law on Betting and Gambling in Football and Other Sports Competitions."
For the other 19 suspects, the indictment requested that they be sentenced to varying terms of imprisonment from 5 to 23 years for the crimes of "being a member of an organization established for the purpose of committing a crime," "money laundering of assets derived from crime," and "violation of the Law on Betting and Gambling in Football and Other Sports Competitions."
The indictment has been sent to the Istanbul Criminal Court of First Instance for evaluation.