Turkish mafia

History

The Turkish mafia was involved in the weapons trade during the 1970s and shifted to the heroin trade from the 1980s onward, later expanding into human smuggling. Bekir Çelenk, a member of the Turkish mafia, participated in the plot to assassinate Pope John Paul II. Some members have ties to Turkey's deep state, including the National Intelligence Organization (MIT) and the far-right Grey Wolves movement, ties that became public during the Susurluk scandal. The Grey Wolves, an ideological organization close to certain mafia groups, were used as an instrument against the PKK and unite far-right nationalists linked to the MHP and AK Party.

Crime groups

Criminal groups composed of Turks operate throughout Turkey and in communities with large ethnically Turkish populations, often maintaining strong links with corrupt politicians and local law enforcement. These groups are active in various organized crime sectors and can be connected to politically motivated organizations such as the Grey Wolves, particularly among immigrant Turkish communities. Many powerful Turkish criminal organizations originate from the Trabzon Province and draw members from Turkish populations.

A relatively high number of these groups come from the Black Sea region, especially Trabzon, and are especially strong within Turkey. Eastern Black Sea crime bosses like Alaattin Çakıcı have known links to or membership in the Grey Wolves. In London, following substantial immigration of Turkish Cypriots, criminal gangs formed in working-class neighborhoods; these clans focus on drug trafficking, armed robbery, and money laundering and share more characteristics with traditional White British crime firms than with the Turkish mafia.