Former Turkish footballer Uğur Boral briefly detained over alleged links to Gülen movement

Former football player Uğur Boral has been briefly detained over his alleged ties to the Gülen movement, according to Habertürk daily newspaper.

The 35-year-old former footballer who player for, among other clubs, Fenerbahçe and Beşiktaş, was detained as part of an investigation into the movement a few days ago and released only after he tipped off on other followers of the group within the football industry, Habertürk said Tuesday.

Boral is accused of having attended religious gatherings organized by the movement and deposited money into Bank Asya in order to the help the movement-affiliated lender continue operating despite the government’s financial and political pressure after Dec 17-25, 2013.

Turkish government accuses the movement of masterminding the July 15, 2016 coup attempt while the latter denies involvement. The bank was eventually closed by the government.

Nearly 150,000 have passed through police custody and 60,000 of them were remanded in prison over alleged links to the Gülen movement since the summer of 2016, and transactions at Bank Asya are considered evidence for membership to the group.

The government earlier detained former footballers Ömer Çatkıç, Zafer Biryol, Bekir İrtegün, İsmail Demiriz and Uğur Tütüneker and issued arrest warrants for Arif Erdem and Hakan Sükür. (turkeypurge.com)

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