2 foreigners found registered at ministry residence: Allegations of a 'trap' for Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya

In audits conducted by the Presidency of Migration Management under the Ministry of Interior, it was revealed that the residence permit issued for Minister Ali Yerlikaya's home in Ankara was registered to two foreigners.

T24 columnist Tolga Şardan, who brought the scandal to light, also reported that the two foreigners granted residence permits at the Interior Minister's home were military academy students of Kyrgyz origin.

Regarding the incident, which caused widespread repercussions in the public eye, Sözcü columnist Saygı Öztürk brought a striking claim to the agenda.

In his article titled 'Was a trap set for the Interior Minister?', Öztürk stated: “There is talk of a setup to discredit Ali Yerlikaya and his deputy ministers, who have been conducting effective operations against organized crime groups, drug traffickers, and terrorist organizations, and carrying out impactful work on every issue concerning their ministry. There are also those who say an 'address trap' was set to create the image that 'the Minister cannot even look after his own residence.'”

The relevant parts of Öztürk's article are as follows:

"An official says, 'This is Ankara; there are some ulterior motives behind events that appear normal.' Two Azerbaijani military students are staying at the Military Academy dormitory. They need to provide an address to be able to go out on 'weekend leave.' Intermediaries wrote the location of the minister's residence as the home address. Although the military students do not stay at the minister's residence, it cannot be said that the two people who acted as intermediaries for them regarding the address are innocent. Whose benefit was considered by them taking part in this setup? It is not difficult to guess who those who want to wear down Yerlikaya and overshadow his successful work are.

Now, the following will be done: The aid of those determined to have left their address without the knowledge of the authorized authorities will be cut. Undoubtedly, this situation will significantly affect asylum seekers. Therefore, it will be known which Syrian is in which province and at which address, and more accurate records will be kept.

The minister's residence was shown as the residential address for the military students. It is necessary to look into 'Who gave them this address? Who prepared and provided the rental contract?'"