18 detained in Turkish football referee betting scandal
ISTANBUL
Turkish prosecutors on Nov. 7 issued detention warrants for 21 people, including 17 referees and the president of a top-flight soccer club, as part of a widening investigation into a betting scandal.
At least 18 suspects were detained for questioning in coordinated early-morning raids across Istanbul and 11 other provinces, according to the Istanbul Chief Prosecutor’s Office.
The 17 referees, identified only by their initials, are being investigated for possible charges of “abuse of office” and “influencing the outcome of a match.”
Murat Özkaya, president of Turkish Super Lig club Eyüpsğor, and Fatih Saraç, former owner of Kasımpaşa, were also being questioned as part of the probe, according to media reports.
Kasımpaşa was placed under trusteeship in September following a separate corruption investigation into the holding company, Can Holding, that previously owned the club.
The scandal erupted after the Turkish Football Federation (TFF) suspended 149 referees and assistant referees last week.
The suspensions range from eight to 12 months but the federation has not specified if any were suspected of betting on matches they had refereed.
TFF President İbrahim Hacıosmanoğlu revealed that a government agency determined 371 of 571 active referees held accounts with betting companies.
Of those, 152 referees allegedly placed bets on soccer matches, including seven top-level referees and 15 top-level assistant referees.
Hacıosmanoğlu added that 10 referees placed bets on more than 10,000 matches each over five years, while some only placed one bet.
One referee allegedly placed bets on 18,227 games, raising serious concerns about the integrity of officiating in Turkish football.
The referees denounced the "outrageous accusations" in a joint statement, insisting that none of them has ever bet on a match they have officiated. Some of them also claim that their betting activities date back to when they were amateur referees.
