Far right leader reacts to reports on former interior minister's ties with gang leader

The leader of far right Nationalist Movement Party (MHP) in Turkey reacted to media reports on alleged association between former interior minister Suleyman Soylu and a recently arrested crime boss.

Journalist Tolga Sardan's piece on 8 September was headlined "Ayhan Bora Kaplan who is known to be in close association with Suleyman Soylu arrested."

Sardan, a prominent journalist with expertise on organized crime networks in Turkey, cited deputy Ahmet Sik's claim that the police department in Ankara has a voice recording of the phone conversation between Soylu and Kaplan the night Kaplan stormed Ankara offices of state broadcaster TRT in 2016 with his men armed with AK-47 rifles.

MHP leader Bahceli said:

"Implicating Mr. Soylu of association with a person who is a subject of many allegations, and molesting him constantly with provocations is neither honorable, nor fair, legal and just."

He added:

"The efforts by those biased people, who glorify Soros supporter Kavala [imprisoned rights defender Osman Kavala] and terrorist Demirtas [imprisoned Kurdish politician Selahattin Demirtas] and who stand against all national and moral values, to implicate Mr. Soylu of involvement in illegal networks is slander at its worst and upright idiocy."