Anti-Terror Association president caught with 50 kilos of cannabis

In a narcotics operation conducted out of Diyarbakır, Şahin Aslan, the president of the Association for the Assistance and Solidarity of Anti-Terror and Duty Hero Martyrs and Veteran Families, was detained with 50 kilos of drugs while attempting to transport cannabis to western provinces. Following an extensive intelligence operation, a search of Aslan's vehicle resulted in the seizure of a total of 50 kilos and 200 grams of skunk-type cannabis in 45 separate packages.

Among the defendants whose trial continued at the High Criminal Court, judicial control measures were applied to Fikriye Gül Turgay, who lived with Şahin Aslan in an unofficial religious marriage, as well as to Aslan himself.

Exercising his right to remain silent while in police custody, Şahin Aslan stated in his defense in court that the seized drugs belonged solely to him and that his partner had no connection to the incident. He stated, "When I went home on the evening of the incident, I asked my partner for an empty suitcase, but I did not tell her what I was going to do with it. The seized drugs belong to me; my partner had no knowledge of this."

Fikriye Gül Turgay stated that her partner had told her they needed to attend a funeral for a relative in Adana and that she was unaware of the drugs. Turgay said, "On the day of the incident, my partner told me that a relative of his had passed away in Adana and that we needed to go to the funeral. I accepted. We set off together; I had no knowledge of the seized drugs. Since we live together in an unofficial religious marriage, I do not know his relatives very well. I do not even know if he has relatives in Adana. When we got into the vehicle, I did not check the trunk, so I did not see the bags and suitcases placed inside. I learned there were drugs in the vehicle when we were caught; I am innocent."

The court pointed out that, thanks to information obtained by the narcotics branch, the vehicle, which was being tracked by its license plate on the day of the operation, was stopped at the exit of Diyarbakır, and a total of 50 kilos and 200 grams of skunk were found during the search inside.

The defendants were referred to the Council of Forensic Medicine to determine whether they used drugs, and urine tests revealed that neither defendant used drugs. Taking into account Şahin Aslan's confession and other evidence in the file, the court initially sentenced him to 12 years in prison; the sentence was reduced to 10 years after applying discretionary mitigation. While Şahin Aslan remains in custody, Fikriye Gül Turgay was acquitted due to a lack of concrete evidence.

Şahin Aslan had been on the public agenda in the region due to his frequent social media posts regarding his contacts and visits with public officials.