An executive from the Kayseri-based Boydak Holding was detained in İstanbul on Tuesday to serve a sentence handed down on terrorism-related charges due to his links to the faith-based Gülen movement, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported.
Businessman Bekir Boydak, a member of the executive board of Boydak Holding, seized by the government in the aftermath of a failed coup in July 2016, was captured at a villa in Çekmeköy where he had been in hiding.
Boydak, like many other members of his family, had stood trial due to his links to the Gülen movement.
The Turkish government brands the Gülen movement as a terrorist organization, claiming it to have masterminded a coup attempt on July 15, 2016, although the movement strongly denies any involvement.
He had been sentenced to seven-and-a-half years on conviction of terrorist organization membership by the Kayseri 2nd High Criminal Court. The sentence was subsequently upheld by the Supreme Court of Appeals.
The Turkish government in August 2016 seized Boydak Holding, which was among Turkey’s largest industrial groups.
Former Boydak Chairman Hacı Boydak and CEO Memduh Boydak along with several company officials had been put in pre-trial detention in March 2016 even before the coup attempt on charges of supporting the so-called “parallel state,” a reference to the Gülen movement coined by the Turkish government.
In 2018 Memduh Boydak was given a jail sentence of 18 years on charges of leading a terrorist organization. Hacı Boydak received 11 years, 10 months on charges of membership in a terrorist organization. Their sentences were upheld by the Supreme Court of Appeals last year. They are still in prison along with several other members of the Boydak family who were arrested following the coup attempt.
Turkey’s Savings Deposit Insurance Fund (TMSF) owns 53 percent of Boydak Holding, the name of which was changed to Erciyes Anadolu Holding by the government in 2019, while the remaining 47 percent is owned by other members of the Boydak family.
Boydak Holding is active in a number of sectors, including energy, furniture and banking with 30 subsidiary companies. According to its website, it has an annual turnover of more than TL 55.6 billion ($1.7 billion) and employs more than 13,000 people.
Following the failed coup, the Turkish government launched a massive purge targeting real and alleged members of the movement under the pretext of an anti-coup fight, removing over 130,000 people from civil service jobs.
The government also seized schools, universities, media outlets, companies and their buildings and the assets of individuals, corporations and organizations that were believed to have had ties to the movement.
The market value of the approximately 700 companies taken over by the TMSF following the failed coup attempt is estimated to be between $4 billion and $5.4 billion in total.