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Prosecutors in Türkiye have filed new charges against 65 suspects accused of forging high school and university diplomas and driver's licenses by illegally accessing public systems using cloned electronic signatures of senior government officials on Wednesday.
The new indictment comes as the second phase of a broader investigation, following a case launched in May against 134 suspects. The indictment, accepted by Ankara’s 23rd Criminal Court of First Instance, seeks prison sentences ranging from five to 50 years.
The suspects allegedly copied e-signatures belonging to the heads and senior officials of key public bodies, including the Information and Communication Technologies Authority (BTK) and the Higher Education Council (YOK), as well as staff at student affairs offices from 14 universities.
Authorities say the network produced and inserted 39 fake university diplomas into official systems. Among the accused is Abdullah Volkan Ucak, a frequent TV guest, who was allegedly added to YOK’s databases as a graduate of Ege University’s psychology and clinical psychology programs.
The indictment also reveals that diplomas of lawyers who died in the Feb. 6, 2023, earthquakes were deleted from the system to make room for fake entries. Statements from the suspects suggest they helped facilitate the irregular appointment of 400 academics, many of whom allegedly gained the titles of associate professor or professor.
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