A new development has occurred in the investigation conducted into Altıneller Kuyumculuk, which operates in Istanbul. Jeweler Mehmet Y. and his son Melikşah Y. were arrested as part of an investigation launched upon the complaints of customers who left their gold in the business's safe after purchasing physical gold.
According to allegations, 7 people who visited the jeweler at different times left the gold they purchased at the business for safekeeping. When the customers wanted to retrieve their gold after some time and could not get a response to their requests, they filed complaints. Following the complaints, the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office Bureau of Forgery and Fraud launched an investigation.
In the examinations conducted regarding the father and son who were taken into custody as part of the investigation, it was determined that 32 more people were victimized using the same method. Thus, the number of victims in the file rose to 39.
The suspects, who were initially released under judicial control, were referred to the courthouse again due to the increase in the number of victims and the scale of the damages. Mehmet Y. and Melikşah Y. were brought before the duty magistrate after prosecution procedures on charges of "breach of trust due to service."
The magistrate decided to arrest the father and son on the grounds that the evidence had not yet been fully collected and there was a suspicion of flight.
In his interrogation before the magistrate, Mehmet Y. stated that he had to call his son to the workplace due to an illness he suffered 5 years ago, saying, "During this period, the business suffered losses and some people experienced financial grievances. We will resolve these as soon as possible; we have no intent to commit a crime."
Melikşah Y. said in his interrogation, "We have made a significant amount of payments, and we will continue to do so. Prison will create serious grievances in this process."
The incident had previously been reflected in the public eye through the statements of Ahmet Mahmut Ünlü, known publicly as Cübbeli Ahmet. In his statements on June 27, Ünlü claimed that many people who entrusted their gold to the jeweler were victimized; he alleged that among the victims were the Federation of Associations for Human Values (İDDEF), affiliated with the İsmailağa Community, and the Erenler Foundation.
In a social media post, Cübbeli Ahmet had also included the following statements: "How many kilos of gold belonging to the İDDEF, affiliated with İsmailağa, and the Erenler Foundation, affiliated with Mahmut Eren, were lost at Altıneller Jeweler, where 500 kilos of gold evaporated, and whose gold was this? Those who did not believe in miracles from the grave saw what it was like to be struck from the grave!"
News Source: 12punto
