Former Interior Minister İdris Naim Şahin has been released under judicial control with a ban on leaving the country after being questioned as a suspect in an investigation into an alleged organized crime network linked to an Islamic religious community.
The Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office said Şahin was referred to a criminal judgeship after investigators determined that a vehicle allocated to him had allegedly been used to facilitate the abduction of Hilmi Tuna Kuriş, an executive of the group under investigation. The court subsequently ordered Şahin to remain in Türkiye as part of judicial control measures.
The investigation centers on the criminal organization led by Alihan Kuriş, who heads the Süleymancılar community. Kuriş was previously arrested pending trial on financial crime charges as part of a broader crackdown targeting the group’s financial activities.
Authorities say that more than 100 billion Turkish Liras — equivalent to more than $2 billion — was transferred abroad through individuals and companies believed to be affiliated with the organization.
Kuriş was captured while hiding in a concealed compartment inside a house that was not registered in his name.
In a separate operation conducted on Aug. 25, authorities detained 37 suspects over their alleged involvement in the organization. All 37 were referred to a criminal judgeship after questioning, with 35 ordered jailed pending trial and two released under judicial control.
The investigation has cast renewed attention on the Süleymancılar, one of Türkiye’s longstanding religious communities. The movement traces its origins to Süleyman Hilmi Tunahan, a religious scholar whose followers became known as “Süleymancılar.” The community has historically been associated with a network of religious education initiatives and student accommodation facilities.
There is no recent official figure for the community’s membership, although it was estimated to have around 2 million followers in Türkiye in the early 1990s.
