Turkish police detained 22 people in raids across 12 provinces on Monday as part of an expanding financial crimes investigation targeting the Süleymanlılar religious community, whose leader has been jailed pending trial since August.
The Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office ordered the detention of 38 suspects and the search of 28 homes and 16 workplaces, according to the Bold Medya news website. Authorities said 22 were taken into custody, while 14 were abroad and police were searching for two others.
Prosecutors accuse the suspects of establishing, leading or belonging to a criminal organization, laundering proceeds from criminal activity, defrauding public institutions and violating Turkey’s tax laws.
The investigation centers on Alihan Kuriş, the leader of the Süleymanlılar religious community, whom a court jailed pending trial in August along with 31 others on allegations of organized crime, fraud and money laundering. Kuriş has denied the accusations.
The October 19 raids were the latest in a series of operations launched in August targeting individuals and businesses linked to the community, with authorities detaining scores of suspects and placing numerous companies under court-appointed trustees.
Justice Minister Akın Gürlek said on October 6 that the investigation involved 162 suspects, including 100 people jailed pending trial and 26 subject to judicial supervision. He said the authorities had also taken control of companies linked to the investigation.
In a previous operation on September 20, prosecutors issued detention warrants for 29 suspects and appointed trustees to 23 companies. Authorities also alleged that individuals linked to the group had attempted to influence elections through financial and organizational activities, without specifying which elections or political parties were involved.
The investigation has also extended to Germany, where Turkish authorities have sought judicial assistance to examine alleged transfers of money abroad.
The Süleymanlılar, whose members use that name while outsiders in Turkey often refer to them as Süleymancılar, trace their roots to the teachings of Islamic scholar Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan. The community operates Quran courses, student dormitories, charities and businesses in Turkey and Europe, particularly Germany. Kuriş, one of Tunahan’s grandsons, assumed leadership in 2016.
The investigation has raised concerns about political motivations because the community has not developed close ties with President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) and has at times reportedly supported opposition parties.
The raids followed months of criticism of the community by politicians and media figures close to the government.
Hüseyin Çelik, a founding member of the AKP and a former education minister, warned in August that investigations into religious communities risked becoming a means of punishing groups whose leaders opposed the government. He questioned whether similar operations would have been carried out against the Süleymanlılar and another religious movement if their leaders had supported the ruling party.
Turkish authorities deny targeting the community because of its religious beliefs or political position. Gürlek has maintained that the investigation concerns alleged financial crimes rather than religious activities.
