Turkey said on Wednesday it had captured the leader of a British gang involved in drug smuggling, illegal gun trade and robbery in an operation in İstanbul, Reuters reported.
Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said Shaun Monaghan, leader of a gang operating in northeast England, was being sought by an Interpol red notice.
#İngiltere tarafından,
🟥İnterpol Kırmızı Bülteni ile aranan İngiltere'nin Kuzey Doğu bölgesinde uyuşturucu madde ticareti yapan "Silahlı Organize Suç Örgütünün" Elebaşı olan Shaun MONAGHAN İstanbul’da yapılan “KAFES -16” Operasyonuyla yakalandı❗️Aziz Milletimizin Bilmesini… pic.twitter.com/F4p6HhfFGD
— Ali Yerlikaya (@AliYerlikaya) December 6, 2023
Monaghan arrived in Turkey in October and the Interpol notice was published on Tuesday, Yerlikaya said. Turkish police had found Monaghan to be living in İstanbul’s Fatih district and captured him on Wednesday, he said.
Video published by the interior ministry showed narcotics police arresting a man in a hotel room. Monaghan’s gang was involved in cocaine and heroin distribution as well as armed robbery, Yerlikaya said on social messaging platform X.
The operation is the latest in a series of busts and arrests over recent weeks targeting international organized crime rings.
Last month, Yerlikaya said Turkey captured Hakan Ayık, a top fugitive wanted in Australia for drug smuggling, and 36 others involved in an international organized crime ring that has also been pursued by US and New Zealand authorities.
Yerlikaya also said at the weekend that police had captured Shamil Amirov, a senior figure in an organized crime group called “Thieves in Law,” which operates in Russia.