Şekip Mosturoğlu explains the 'Match-Fixing Conspiracy' investigation in football: A striking detail about Aziz Yıldırım...

The Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office has issued detention orders for former Turkish Football Federation (TFF) Vice President Lütfi Arıboğan, as well as Ahmet Gülüm, İlhan Helvacı, and Ebru Köksal, as part of an investigation into the FETÖ 'match-fixing conspiracy' in football that took place on July 3, 2011.

Within the scope of the investigation, Ebru Köksal and Ahmet Gülüm were released following their statements to the prosecutor's office, while judicial control measures were imposed on Lütfi Arıboğan and İlhan Helvacı.

Meanwhile, journalist Aytunç Erkin wrote about the details of his interview with Şekip Mosturoğlu, who is mentioned in the investigation, in his column in Nefes Gazetesi.

The details of the interview shared by Erkin are as follows:

During the July 3, 2011 operation, Aziz Yıldırım, who was the president of Fenerbahçe at the time, and the club were persistently asking, 'Where is the TFF's role in this?' What should we make of this latest investigation?

It would be naive to think that the stakeholders of the July 3 conspiracy consisted only of members of the police and the judiciary. Because, in addition to the judicial grievances we experienced during the process, there were also grievances stemming from the sporting sanctions imposed on our club. The unprecedented practices, impositions, and hasty decisions made by the TFF against us and our club required us to think this way. During this process, Fenerbahçe suffered hundreds of millions of dollars in losses due to the TFF's actions. If you recall, I was constantly repeating the same thing: A FETÖ purge was carried out at the Meat and Milk Board (Et-Balık Kurumu), but the federation was left untouched. With this, the first steps of a long-overdue cleanup have been taken.

WE REACHED THE DOCUMENT OF OUR CLAIM; Aziz Yıldırım ALSO PROVIDED INFORMATION

Could you tell us the story of the email you received and the subsequent process?

This email was sent to me from Germany. At first, I thought it might be a virus or spam. Still, I opened one of the attachments. When I opened it, my eyes widened in shock. It was clear that the TFF had manipulated UEFA. I excitedly called our lawyers, Fethi Pekin and Alper Alpoğlu. They were also very excited. Then I called Ali Koç. We experienced incredible excitement and happiness. We had obtained, at least partially, the document for our most important claim regarding the July 3 process. In the morning, I informed Aziz Yıldırım. It was an incredible feeling. Then, Alper Alpoğlu, İrfan Coşkun, and I went to the prosecutor's office. The deputy chief prosecutor investigating terrorism crimes listened to us, and we gave our statements as persons with knowledge. A while later, Aziz Yıldırım went to the prosecutor's office and provided information.

What do you expect from the case?

This investigation alone is very important in its own right. Even the press release from the Chief Public Prosecutor's Office regarding the matter is full of legal findings and assessments we have been waiting for for years. Now we are waiting for the indictment and for the case to be opened. We are looking forward to facing those who orchestrated this conspiracy within the legal process. This is not our personal expectation. As a community, we have waited a long time for this day.

As I recall, you also had complaints about those detained in 2014. Why 11 years later?

The complaint we filed in 2014, just like the one we filed for the May 12 events, was closed without any action taken. This time, the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office handled the matter with incredible seriousness and sensitivity, initiating this process that our community has been waiting to see concluded for years. The documents in the attachment of the email we received also substantiated our complaint regarding the matter. It was as if our claim had finally taken flesh and bone.

Aziz Yıldırım used to say, 'The July 3 process is still ongoing.' Is it still ongoing?

It is, absolutely. We still encounter irrational things in both sporting competitions and institutional relations. There can be no other explanation for this. FETÖ remnants are seeking revenge at every opportunity for the defeat they suffered against Fenerbahçe. As a community, we must never abandon our firm stance on this issue.

How do you evaluate Lütfi Arıboğan not remembering his meetings with Mehmet Baransu?

There is no need to even comment on this. The intensity and nature of the relationship reveal everything. What those who played with the fate of a Fenerbahçe Sports Club remember or do not remember is of no importance to me. With this investigation, history will always remember them. What was Arıboğan saying: 'If you look at it from the beginning of the process, politics is guilty, the community (cemaat) is guilty, the police are guilty, the prosecutor is guilty, the TFF is guilty, CAS is guilty, UEFA is guilty, FIFA is guilty, the media is guilty, Mehmet Ali Aydınlar is guilty, Şenes Erzik is guilty, Lütfi Arıboğan is guilty, İlhan Helvacı is guilty, and now Ebru Köksal is guilty. This is not something that can happen. It reminds me of the saying in the famous joke; doesn't the thief have any fault at all?' I think Arıboğan learned the answer to this question in the most understandable way at the end of the prosecution process.