Regulatory authorities in Turkey have announced the confiscation of a large cache of digital assets and have detained criminals associated with the illegalities. According to the update, the 46 individuals arrested were said to have been involved in a betting scam. The statement also claimed that the sting operation was conducted across eight provinces, including Ankara and Yozgat.
Turkey set to prosecute 46 participants
The arraigned suspects were said to have facilitated the illegal transfer of funds from crime to the crypto accounts tied to Halil Falyali and his wife. Halil Falyali is a known betting operator across the country. The businessman was murdered close to his house by armed criminals earlier in the year. The publication claimed that the murdered businessman previously ran an illegal betting business.
The statement also said that more than $134 million in illegal funds were sent across 11 crypto accounts, including that of the murdered businessman and his wife. The statement claimed that out of the whole loot, $40 million was transferred into different crypto exchanges, with some going outside of the country. Although the criminals are currently in custody and the loot has been confiscated, the authorities claim they are still investigating the crime.
The scammers used BTC and USDT to move illegal funds
The statement also claimed that most of the $40 million loot confiscated was divided between Bitcoin and USDT. Illegalities in the crypto market are one menace that has continued to rid the sector of the good it is trying to bring. Although some individuals have suggested ways to mitigate the crimes, nothing seems to work. Some days ago, the FTX boss mentioned a plan that authorities could adopt to curb illegal activities in the market. He proposed a whitelist and blocklist system in which accounts tied or suspected to have been involved in criminal activities would be blacklisted and vice versa.
However, that system would not go so far in the market as loopholes could compromise the accounts of innocent traders. Turkey has also been working on adopting blockchain while doing away with digital assets. Earlier this year, the country banned the purchase of goods and services using digital assets while it recently announced that it would base its e-Human project on a blockchain. Although more details have not been released, all indications point that Turkey plans to use the project to enable residents to gain access to skills.
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