In an intensive operation performed throughout eight provinces in Istanbul, regulation enforcement apprehended 50 suspects concerned in an unlawful bootleg liquor ring Wednesday.
The operation, orchestrated by the Anti-Smuggling Crimes Branch Directorate of the Istanbul Police Department, aimed to curb the smuggling of alcoholic drinks. Investigators discovered that the detained people, who owned corporations working within the chemical and disinfectant sectors, had been promoting ethyl alcohol to producers of counterfeit alcohol. The suspects had been utilizing containers labeled with “surface cleaner” and “undrinkable” to distribute the ethyl alcohol.
Further investigations revealed that these suspects had been additionally manufacturing illicit alcoholic drinks and affixing fraudulent labels onto liquor bottles. Authorities found that the group, posing as authorized importers of alcoholic drinks, had plans to distribute the pretend drinks to vacationer amenities in numerous tourism areas, suggesting an organized operation.
After practically 10 months of intensive surveillance and bodily monitoring, regulation enforcement pinpointed the addresses and identities of the suspects. A simultaneous operation in Istanbul, Tekirdağ, Çanakkale, Balıkesir, Izmir, Aydın, Çorum and Mardin led to the apprehension of the 50 suspects.
During the raids on the areas, authorities seized a major quantity of proof, together with 51 tons and 427 liters of ethyl alcohol, 370 liters of alcohol taste, 44,773 bottles of alcoholic drinks, 21,375 empty liquor bottles, 18,600 liquor bottle caps, 10,480 pretend banderols, equipment for capping, water engines, a breathalyzer, alcohol filling machines, packaging gear, filters, an unlicensed firearm, narcotics and 10 automobiles used for legal actions.
The apprehended suspects had been taken to the police station for additional processing because the investigation into the unlawful bootleg liquor community continues.
Source: www.dailysabah.com