Interim ruling in the trial of Özlem Öz and Tayyar Öz

The Istanbul Anadolu Chief Public Prosecutor's Office had launched an investigation into social media influencer Özlem Altınok and her husband Tayyar Taylan Öz, along with their business partner İbrahim Karaorhanlı, following reports that they "created a fake brand perception by making attention-grabbing posts and offered low-cost products for sale at high prices." The indictment prepared upon the completion of the investigation stated that the Financial Crimes Investigation Board (MASAK) had issued a report following the reports.

The MASAK report stated that no evidence of forgery or organized crime was found in the e-commerce activities conducted through Medelina Sağlık ve Reklam Hizmetleri Ltd. Şti., and therefore, a decision of non-prosecution was issued regarding the charges of 'forgery of official documents,' 'membership in an organization,' and 'cooperative fraud.' On the other hand, it was noted that a tax audit revealed tax evasion through the company, causing a public loss of 10 million lira, with a penalty of 51 million lira for this loss. The indictment stated that there was sufficient evidence to open a public lawsuit, including findings that income deemed to have been obtained through tax evasion was laundered.

The case continued today at the Anadolu 2nd Criminal Court of First Instance. Defendants Özlem Altınok Öz, her husband Tayyar Taylan Öz, business partner İbrahim Karaorhanlı, and their lawyers were present at the hearing.

ÖZLEM ALTINOK ÖZ: “I AM VERY SAD”

Testifying in court, Özlem Altınok Öz said, "I am a bit sad because I am being accused of such a thing. I do not accept the accusations. I am a mother of 4 children, and my life is spent with them. I even had a miscarriage due to these events. I want my acquittal. Finding myself in such an accusation has saddened me very much. A lien has been placed on my father's pension. I want these to end now. The landlord wants us to move out of the house."

TAYLAN ÖZ: “WE ENTERED TRADE AFTER MY ACCOUNT GREW”

Non-detained defendant Tayyar Taylan Öz said in his defense, "I reject the accusations. I have an income of 100 thousand lira. We started making posts on social media. Because of these posts, my page started to grow. After my account grew, we decided to enter trade, and we were not successful in this regard. Then we became partners with Mr. İbrahim and achieved great success. A smear campaign started against us on social media. Even though all our trade was done with invoices and taxes, it was called money laundering. We faced this process while there was nothing related to money laundering. We achieved great success; a smear campaign started while we were expecting a medal. We made large sales from e-commerce. We sold these products with invoices. We paid high amounts of taxes, but unfair smears were made against us on social media and a lawsuit was filed. We were victimized due to the lawsuit and the measures taken. I request my acquittal. The money coming into my brother's account is a matter of intra-family debt. During that period, when we were doing social media advertisements, payments went to that account. I do not accept the MASAK report. The advertisements for Engin Polat and his companies were made by my wife on social media. We had a receivable because of this. Due to my intra-family financial savings, the money we were owed was deposited into my brother Tacettin's account," he said.

KARAORHANLI: “I PROVIDED CONSULTANCY, I COVERED THE LOSS”

Defendant İbrahim Karaorhanlı stated that he had submitted a written defense and said, "I have prepared my written defense regarding the incident. I do not accept the accusations. There was no complaint against me. While Bülent Cihan Timur was shown as an organization leader in the MASAK reports, no measures were applied against this person, and his name was not mentioned in the media. A lien was placed on the assets of the company, myself, and the other defendants and their relatives. A lawsuit was filed against us on the grounds that the incident was leaked to the press. The reports obtained stated that there were no off-the-books sales. Tax crime cannot be considered a predicate offense. I know there is no other lawsuit filed on this matter. I had difficult days financially in this incident. They received consultancy from me, and Ms. Özlem advertised the products. During the investigation phase, I borrowed money and paid the amount that was the loss. Although it was said that the measures would be lifted, a lawsuit was filed and it was left to the discretion of the court," he said.

INTERIM RULING ANNOUNCED

The public prosecutor requested that the existing measures be maintained and that missing issues be completed. The court panel ruled to lift the seizure and trusteeship order on the Medelina Sağlık ve Reklam Hizmetleri company, while ordering the continuation of judicial control measures for the defendants. The hearing was adjourned to February 26, 2026.