Writer Ashkim Kapşmak was detained in Istanbul within the scope of the “Cybergoz-42” operation, organized against individuals committing qualified fraud who promised “high profits with zero risks” through a so-called cryptocurrency buying and selling platform, an Ankara-based organization in the 21st province called “SmartTrade Coin,” and was taken to Ankara, where it was discovered that an investigation was taking place.
It was revealed that behavioral science expert and writer Ashkim Kapşmak was detained within the scope of the investigation conducted by the Ankara Chief Prosecutor’s Office, which led to the arrest of 127 suspects found to have made billions of dollars in illegal profits and committed crimes. The international fraud was caught and brought to Ankara, where, after the procedures were completed, a police investigation took place.
Operation CyberEye-42
The investigation, conducted by the Ankara Provincial Police Cybercrime Combating Directorate under the coordination of the Security Directorate Cybercrime Department, revealed the crimes of “qualified fraud, establishing an organization for that purpose, the commission of crimes and laundering assets obtained from crimes” were carried out in cities based in Antalya, Istanbul, Izmir, Eskisehir and Ankara. 127 suspects were caught in the operations carried out in Uşak, Aydın, Muğla, Kütahya, Çorum, Balikesir, Denizli, Adana, Bursa, Malatya, Tekirdag, Isparta, Karabük, Konya, Şırnak and Samsun.
The operation was announced in the morning by Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya, who said in a post on his social media account: “Just like in the Black Homeland, in the Cyber Homeland our virtual patrols are on duty 24/7.”
The suspects, who were arrested this morning in an operation called “Cybergoz-42,” instructed citizens to invest through a so-called cryptocurrency trading platform called “SmartTradeCoin,” promising “zero risk and high profits.” They are said to have sold bot applications that perform automated trading, and built a “Ponzi Chain” system that promised income to existing users if they brought in new users. The suspects, who are said to have committed an international fraud using this method, are said to have made illegal profits of $1 billion.
As a result of the operations carried out within the framework of the investigation, it was noted that 177 real and 61 movable properties, worth TL 1 billion, were seized, and it was stated that one unlicensed gun and one empty cartridge were seized during the operation. A gun and a number of digital materials were seized during the search at the address, which may lead to an expansion.
