Turkey detains actress and seven others in major illicit drug operation

Turkish authorities detained actress Ezgi Eyüpoğlu and seven others on Friday in an expanding Istanbul drug investigation that has targeted media and entertainment figures for weeks.

Eyüpoğlu was detained on suspicion of purchasing drugs for personal use, according to the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office. Two others, identified by initials EK and İAA, were detained on suspicion of manufacturing and trafficking drugs. Four suspects were detained on suspicion of facilitating prostitution.

The operation is the latest phase in a wide-ranging investigation that has seen dozens detained since October.

Singer Aleyna Tilki, actress İrem Sak, social media influencer Danla Bilic and Mümine Senna Yıldız were detained on Thursday and released the same day after providing blood and hair samples to the Council of Forensic Medicine.

Authorities issued detention warrants for actress Melisa Döngel and actors Yusuf Güney and Cihan Şensözlü but were unable to locate them at their registered addresses.

Arrest warrants were issued for social media influencers Şeyma Subaşı and Mert Vidinli, and model Şevval Şahin, who are believed to be abroad.

During searches on Thursday, police seized 5 grams of cannabis and grinding equipment at Yıldız's residence, prosecutors said.

What we know about the investigation

The investigation began accelerating in early December after shifting from testing-based inquiries to detentions and arrests. Arrest warrants were issued this week for Kasım Garipoğlu and businessman Burak Ateş on suspicion of supplying drugs, facilitating their use and drug use.

Garipoğlu is the son of Hayyam Garipoğlu, chairman of the Garipoğlu Group of Companies, and cousin of Cem Garipoğlu, who was convicted of murdering 17-year-old Münevver Karabulut in 2009.

The victim's dismembered body was found in rubbish containers in Istanbul's Etiler district. Cem Garipoğlu evaded capture for 197 days before surrendering and was sentenced to 24 years in prison in 2011.

He was reported to have died by suicide in Silivri Prison in 2014, though DNA tests in 2024 confirmed his remains after years of speculation that he had faked his death.

Hayyam Garipoğlu was sentenced to three years in prison for aiding a criminal in connection with that case, while Cem Garipoğlu's mother received a three-year sentence for destroying evidence.

Top media figures arrested

Among those previously arrested in the investigation are former Habertürk TV editor-in-chief Mehmet Akif Ersoy, presenter Ela Rümeysa Cebeci, Ufuk Tetik, Ebru Gülan, Mustafa Manaz and journalist Sercan Yaşar. Cebeci was arrested on 17 December after a drug test returned positive.

Yaşar was released on 17 December after benefiting from provisions on adequate remorse, prosecutors said. Turkish media reported he provided information to investigators after his arrest.

The investigation has drawn attention partly because it targets figures perceived as having ties to Turkey's establishment rather than government critics, according to legal experts quoted in Turkish media.

Turkish law distinguishes between drug trafficking offences and possession for personal use. The investigation focuses on both supply networks and users within Istanbul's entertainment and media industries.