Turkish police on Wednesday detained 17 people as part of an ongoing investigation into alleged stock market manipulation at Borsa Istanbul, prosecutors said.
The İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office said in a statement that the detentions were carried out based on reports from the Capital Markets Board (SPK) following findings of manipulative price movements in certain stocks. Police conducted simultaneous operations in İstanbul, Ankara, Gaziantep, Adana, Burdur and Aydın provinces.
According to the SPK reports, the suspects allegedly used social media platforms to spread speculative information and create artificial price fluctuations in specific shares. One of the stocks under scrutiny belongs to Ersan Alışveriş Hizmetleri ve Gıda Sanayi Ticaret A.Ş., which trades on Borsa Istanbul under the ticker KIMMR.
The detainees were taken to İstanbul’s financial crimes unit for questioning. Prosecutors said the investigation includes allegations of market fraud and forming an organization to commit financial crimes.
The latest operation is part of a broader probe launched in February after reports of unusual price movements on Borsa Istanbul. Since then, authorities have carried out multiple waves of detentions and arrests across several provinces.
In earlier operations conducted between March and December, dozens of suspects were detained on charges of market manipulation and related offenses. Courts ordered the arrest of a significant number of those suspects, while others were released under judicial supervision, including travel bans and reporting requirements.
In December eight people were arrested over alleged manipulative transactions involving shares of Avrupa Yatırım Holding A.Ş., as part of the same investigation.
Turkey has stepped up scrutiny of trading activity in recent years amid volatility in financial markets. Regulators have repeatedly warned against coordinated speculation and the use of social media to influence stock prices.