In a major international police operation coordinated by Turkey’s Interior and Justice Ministries in cooperation with Interpol and Europol, 45 wanted individuals were extradited to Turkey from various countries.
Among them is Hakan Atici, the former long-serving director of the Les Ambassadeurs hotel and casino in Kyrenia, which belonged to murdered Turkish Cypriot businessman Halil Falciali.
Arrested in Argentina
Atici, who was wanted under an Interpol Red Notice, was arrested in Argentina and extradited to Turkey. According to Turkish Cypriot and Turkish media, his name had already appeared in indictments related to an illegal betting network, and he allegedly personally registered numerous illegal gambling websites.
Turkish prosecutors classify him in the “leadership group” of the organisation, with a potential sentence exceeding 50 years if convicted.
The Falciali case
Halil Falciali, considered the “king” of illegal gambling in occupied Cyprus, was assassinated in February 2022 in Kyrenia when unknown assailants opened fire on his vehicle.
The same operation also resulted in the extradition of 35 individuals from Georgia, 5 from Germany, and one each from Bulgaria, Sweden, Iraq, and Montenegro.
