31.10.2026 12:40
In the money laundering investigation targeting the Sarıgül family, in which 22 suspects including Emir and Ömer Sarıgül were arrested, Cihan Tunç, referred to as the family's "black box," became a confessor. Tunç claimed that cash was converted into gold and diamonds at the Grand Bazaar and taken abroad by private jets, and laundered through Germany, Switzerland, Austria and the TRNC.
Remarkable developments have occurred in the money laundering investigation in which 22 suspects, including Emir and Ömer Sarıgül, were arrested. It has been learned that Cihan Tunç, described as the “black box” of the Sarıgül family and said to be Emir Sarıgül’s friend of 25 years, has turned informant.
THE SARIGÜL FAMILY’S “BLACK BOX” SPEAKS
New details have emerged in the investigation into allegations that large sums of money of unknown origin were laundered through companies established domestically and abroad.
It was stated that Cihan Tunç, one of the key figures in the investigation in which 22 suspects, including Emir and Ömer Sarıgül, were arrested, has turned informant.
Tunç, said to be Emir Sarıgül’s friend of 25 years, is considered to possess important information for the investigation due to his closeness to the family.
“HIS PERIOD AS MAYOR IS ALSO UNDER INVESTIGATION”
CNN Türk reporter Merve Tokaz, in the information she provided about the investigation, said that Mustafa Sarıgül’s commercial activities stretching from his mayoral term to the present are also within the scope of the examination.
Tokaz used the following statements:
“Sarıgül’s commercial activities, beginning with his mayoral term and continuing to this day, and the entire process during his mayoralty are all on the radar of the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office. Very serious sums of money are being mentioned, and the prosecutor’s office conducting the investigation is examining this money, its source, and how the organization that developed during the laundering process operated.
There is a sexual harassment accusation, money laundering of criminal proceeds, an accusation of forming an organization, and also a bribery accusation. We are talking about four separate statements.
A very key figure in the investigation is Cihan Tunç, Emir Sarıgül’s friend of 25 years. Tunç is one of those arrested. He is someone within the family.
One of the alleged and identified issues regarding Mustafa Sarıgül is that one leg of the money laundering organization extends to Switzerland. The words of Cihan Tunç, who gave a statement, are also of a nature to prove this situation.”
“THEY WERE TAKING GOLD AND DIAMONDS ABROAD ON PRIVATE JETS”
Cihan Tunç, arrested in the investigation, made striking allegations in his statement regarding the period when Emir Sarıgül was married to Fatoş Altınbaş.
According to Tunç, cash was converted into gold and diamonds at Istanbul’s Grand Bazaar and then taken abroad by private jets.
Tunç said the following in his statement:
“While Emir Sarıgül was married to Fatoş Altınbaş, he would make trips abroad on a private jet belonging to Burak Kaya. On these trips abroad, they would take out of the country the cash they had converted into gold and diamonds. I witnessed this many times. There was even a person named Erol at the airport. An agreement had been made with this person so that they would not be searched. They also signed sham promissory notes, created a so-called debtor-creditor relationship, and smuggled money to Switzerland.”
ALLEGATION OF SHAM PROMISSORY NOTES TO TRANSFER MONEY TO SWITZERLAND
One of the striking details in Tunç’s statement was the allegation that money was transferred to Switzerland.
Tunç claimed that sham promissory notes were signed in order to create debtor-creditor relationships between the parties that did not actually exist.
He also claimed that an agreement was made with a person named Erol at the airport to prevent searches during the trips.
These statements were among the allegations in the investigation regarding the source and transfer methods of the money claimed to have been taken abroad.
“AN APARTMENT IN ÇEKMEKÖY WAS GIVEN SO THAT HE WOULD NOT TALK”
Cihan Tunç also put forward a new claim in the section of the investigation concerning sexual harassment accusations.
In this context, Tunç alleged that an apartment in Istanbul’s Çekmeköy district was given to the bodyguard named Beşir Ömer Demir in exchange for his not talking.
While the allegation in question is being evaluated within the scope of the investigation, there is no information indicating that the statements that the apartment was given and that this was done in exchange for his silence have been independently confirmed.
PARKING LOTS, EXCHANGE OFFICES AND REAL ESTATE UNDER INVESTIGATION
On the financial dimension of the investigation, the allegations that money of unknown origin was laundered through parking lots, exchange offices, real estate, and companies are being focused on.
In the investigation, stated to be conducted by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, it was reported that the source of the money, the financial relationships between companies, and the trail of the amounts alleged to have been transferred abroad are being investigated.
The file includes accusations of money laundering of criminal proceeds, forming an organization, bribery, and sexual harassment.
WHAT HAPPENED?
The Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office had launched an investigation into allegations that large sums of money of unknown origin were laundered through companies established domestically and abroad, were not used in accordance with investment contracts, and that criminal proceeds were given a legal appearance.
In the case, which came to public attention with the complaints of German citizens K.P. and M.B., striking allegations were included, such as an 80 million euro contract, a 100 million euro transfer, a promise to take a 1 billion euro fund abroad, and a 1.5 million euro boat sale.
Within the scope of the investigation, 22 suspects including Emir and Ömer Sarıgül, Cihan Tunç and Sofu Altınbaş were arrested, while judicial control decisions were issued for some suspects. It was announced that sexual assault allegations against Mustafa Sarıgül would also be sent to the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office for separate evaluation.
In the continuation of the investigation, the statements before the prosecutor’s office of 8 suspects who had been taken into custody were completed, and Zülfü Sümer and Abdulkadir Sezgin were referred to the magistrate judge with a request for arrest. Judicial control was requested for Müge Bayır, Gökcen Bayır, Yusuf Demir, Elif Keskinel Ülker, Hatice Kübra Arat and Hasan Hişim. It was reported that efforts to capture 2 fugitive suspects within the scope of the file were ongoing.