 and affiliated companies, accusing them of defrauding the state through export subsidies, the Anka news agency reported.){kind=link}
Turkish police have detained 21 people in an investigation targeting the İstanbul Gold Refinery (IAR) and affiliated companies, accusing them of defrauding the state through export subsidies, the Anka news agency reported.
The İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office said in a statement on Monday that detention warrants were issued for 23 suspects on charges of forming a criminal organization, fraud and violations of multiple financial laws,. The suspects are accused of abusing a government program that provides companies with a 3 percent incentive on foreign currency revenue generated through exports.
Prosecutors say the suspects established 24 companies to carry out the scheme, conducting $543 million worth of exports through them. By exploiting a government program that provides companies with a 3 percent incentive on foreign currency revenue generated through exports, the suspects allegedly secured about $12 million in state subsidies, systematically defrauding the state.
According to the investigation, the scheme involved importing gold ore from abroad under company names, then allegedly melting it in domestic facilities and mixing it with acid solutions to make it appear processed. The processed metals were then exported, generating foreign exchange income that qualified for the government incentive.
The police took 21 suspects into custody in coordinated raids at 24 locations. The prosecutor’s office said the operation revealed that the suspects caused financial harm to the state while obtaining illegal profits.
The investigation also attracted an international reaction. Timothy Ash, an emerging markets analyst, said on X that the raids in İstanbul appeared to be part of a broader push by the government to project an image of fighting corruption.
He linked the case to earlier raids on companies tied to the Ciner and Can group and the recent arrest of opposition mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, questioning whether the campaign would convince the public.
Raids in Istanbul on GB have focused on illegal gold & diamond trade, coming after Ciner/Can raids, sense govt here wants to send imagine of bigger fight against corruption, not just CHP targeted & Imamoglu arrest all part of same agenda. Will that sell?
— Timothy Ash (@tashecon) October 6, 2025
Monday’s operation came weeks after Turkish authorities seized control of more than 120 companies belonging to Can Holding, which in 2024 acquired media outlets from the Ciner Group, another large conglomerate with mining, energy, chemicals and media interests. Prosecutors have accused executives from both Can and Ciner of money laundering, tax evasion and forming a criminal organization.
İmamoğlu, a member of the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) and widely viewed as President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s strongest political rival, has been jailed since March 23 on corruption charges that critics say are politically motivated.
Meanwhile, the İstanbul Gold Refinery ranked fifth in the İstanbul Chamber of Industry’s list of Turkey’s 500 largest industrial enterprises in 2024. Its founder, Fazlı Halaç, died in May.
The refinery also drew public attention in 2015 when President Erdoğan inaugurated a school for hearing-impaired students in the Black Sea province of Rize that was funded by the company, presenting the Halaç family with a plaque of appreciation.