Organized crime leader Serkan Kurtuluş arrested

Serkan Kurtuluş, the leader of an organized crime group wanted internationally via a red notice, has been arrested and remanded in custody by the İzmir 3rd High Criminal Court. Kurtuluş was captured in Argentina in 2020 and subsequently extradited to Turkey.

He faces a multitude of charges in Turkey, including premeditated murder, intentional homicide, establishing a criminal organization, extortion, and illegal possession of dangerous substances. Despite being sought on a red notice for 33 offenses, Kurtuluş asserted during his initial testimony via the Audio and Visual Information System (SEGBİS) that he had no knowledge of the charges or the case.

Kurtuluş stated that he has been living abroad for approximately 10 years and has already served time in detention in Argentina for 6 years and 2 months, and in Georgia for 8 months. He argued that under Turkish law, pre-trial detention cannot exceed five years and requested to be tried without detention, citing his time served abroad.

However, the prosecutor's office requested Kurtuluş's arrest, citing the existing evidence, the nature of the accusations, and the risk of flight. The court ultimately decided to detain him, considering his fugitive status since the investigation phase and the strong evidence suggesting his involvement in the crimes.

Kurtuluş was brought back to Turkey in 2020 after his extradition process was finalized. The process, coordinated by the Interpol-Europol Department, involved Turkish officials receiving him from Argentinian authorities. During a stopover in Brazil, Kurtuluş reportedly caused a disturbance by shouting about a bomb on the plane in Spanish, an attempt to evade the extradition process that ultimately failed.

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I have been detained in total for 7 years abroad in the countries I mentioned earlier within the scope of this file. Considering my detention period, I request that I be tried without detention.