Kerim Dağlıoğlu, a Turkish drug lord who was wanted on an INTERPOL Red Notice issued at Turkey’s request, has been captured in Spain, according to Turkish Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya.
Yerlikaya, who has announced the capture of many international criminals in Turkey since taking office in June of last year, said on X on Wednesday that Dağlıoğlu, who is known as Emre Karaca, was captured in Spain.
Narkotik Suçlarla Mücadele Başkanlığımızın katılımıyla İspanya’da “ARGAY” Operasyonu gerçekleştirildi. Uluslararası uyuşturucu karteli çökertildi❗️
🟥 Ülkemizce Kırmızı Bülten’le aranan ve Emre Karaca ismiyle bilinen örgüt lideri Kerim Dağlıoğlu yakalandı.
📍Ayrıca Argay… pic.twitter.com/D9l7aZMbY3
— Ali Yerlikaya (@AliYerlikaya) June 26, 2024
According to the minister, the Turkish drug lord was apprehended as part of operation “Argay,” which was conducted jointly by over 400 Spanish, French and Turkish police officers.
Yerlikaya added that a total of 42 criminal organization members who are citizens of Spain, Germany, Austria, Syria, Montenegro, Romania, Ukraine, Argentina and Venezuela were also captured in the operation carried out in Granada, Malaga and Seville. The police also seized over two tons of cannabis, a number of firearms, luxury vehicles and cash in house searches.
Meanwhile, Cevdet Akay, a lawmaker from the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), unrolled on the floor of the parliament hall a 20-meter-long sheet of paper that contained all the names of international gang leaders arrested in Turkey, in an attempt to emphasize the lack of security in the country.
LİSTE MECLİSE SIĞMADI👇
CHP Milletvekili Cevdet Akay, Türkiye'de yakalanan uluslararası çete liderlerinin 20,5 metrelik listesini TBMM'de açtı.CHP’li Mahmut Tanal: “Sayın başkan bu 100 metre, bitmiyor.” #sondakika @emrkongar pic.twitter.com/LiY7FuMNvQ
— MediaPost (@xmedia_post) June 26, 2024
The Birgün daily reported in April that law enforcement officers conducted 1,187 operations targeting criminal gangs in Turkey between June 1, when Yerlikaya took office, and April 8, detaining 8,052 people, with 3,036 of the suspects arrested and 1,751 released under judicial supervision over the course of 10 months.
During the time in office of Yerlikaya’s predecessor, Süleyman Soylu, Turkey faced allegations of involvement in international drug trafficking, primarily driven by Turkish mob boss Sedat Peker. In a series of dramatic videos in 2021, Peker accused Soylu and other high-ranking officials of protecting and facilitating cocaine trafficking networks.
Only 488 operations were conducted against organized crime groups during Soylu’s tenure in 2022.
Soylu’s departure from the ministry had brought his alleged involvement in international drug trafficking and ties to mafia groups into the spotlight, leading to significant changes in the Turkish police force and crackdowns on international drug rings.
Soylu was appointed interior minister shortly after a coup attempt in Turkey in July 2016. He was the architect of a massive purge and the arrest of thousands of non-loyalist citizens on bogus terrorism or coup charges.
He was elected to parliament in the May general election as a ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) lawmaker and enjoys parliamentary immunity.