Turkish authorities have arrested 234 people in a coordinated operation with four European countries against drug trafficking organizations, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said on Tuesday.
“We owned 234 high -level crime organization leaders, 225 from the interior of Turkey and nine from abroad,” said Yerlikaya, adding that 10 of the suspects were sought with Interpol Red reviews.
Speaking in Ankara, he said that detained persons had been sought after for crimes, including international drug trafficking, money laundering, homicide, kidnapping, threats and blackmail.
Police in Belgium, Germany, Spain, the Netherlands and Turkey carried out coordinated operations, said Yerlikaya, adding that the prisoners were suspected of participating in a program producing and trafficking in cocaine, heroin and other drugs.
The operation has entered hundreds of properties, vehicles, holdings and bank accounts with a value totaling 13 billion LIRA ($ 341 million), he said.
Turkish police worked for eight months with the European Union Europol agency to map and decipher the organization’s secrets, contacts and methods, he added.
