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A senior Turkish port official was detained after being caught taking a bribe during a police operation in the southwestern resort town of Bodrum, Turkish media reported Wednesday.
Bodrum, on Türkiye’s Aegean coast, is one of the country’s best-known tourism hubs.
The suspect, identified by the initials T.A., heads the Bodrum Regional Port Authority and was detained as part of an investigation led by the Bodrum Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office.
The investigation began after a yacht agency owner, identified as T.S., filed a complaint with the Bodrum branch of the Anti-Smuggling and Organized Crime Department, or KOM.
T.S. alleged that T.A. demanded €2,000 each time a luxury yacht belonging to a Russian businessman entered Bodrum.
According to the complaint, the yacht entered Türkiye six times during the 2026 summer season, with T.A. allegedly demanding a total of €12,000.
T.S. said he agreed to make the payments to prevent disruptions to the yacht’s procedures.
The agency owner also alleged that T.A. had previously made him cover expenses for his son’s circumcision ceremony.
T.S. further claimed that in 2025 he collected 500,000 Turkish liras from a boat to which he had been directed and delivered the money to T.A. at the home of a Port Authority employee identified as O.C.
Following the complaint, prosecutors obtained authorization for technical and physical surveillance.
Police recorded the serial numbers of money used in the operation.
After T.S. entered T.A.’s office and handed over the money, officers moved in and detained the port chief.
O.C., a Bodrum Port Authority employee believed to be linked to the case, was also detained, bringing the number of suspects in custody to two.
Searches of the suspects’ workplaces, homes and vehicles uncovered €66,280, £440, $660 and ₺52,200.
Police also seized an unlicensed 9 mm handgun, 138 rounds of ammunition, four bladed weapons and eight digital materials.
The suspects remain in police custody as procedures continue.
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