Turkey’s gambling-mad political party raided yet again

Authorities in Turkey have arrested more members of a new political party, the existence of which police maintain is a front for illegal gambling activity.

On Saturday, police raided offices belonging to the Future Party of Turkey (GTP), detaining seven individuals and fining 101 others for illegal gambling activities. Bayram Ilkkiliç, the chairman of the GTP’s provincial office in Adana, was among those arrested.

Ilkkiliç’s presence violated a court order barring him from entering the GTP’s provincial headquarters, based on previous raids in which police determined illegal gambling activity was being conducted on the premises. Police arrested eight organizers and fined 87 gamblers in the most recent raid, which was conducted one month ago.

To date, police have conducted over 100 such raids on the same building, which has been occupied by a succession of political parties and labor unions that police claim are simply fronts for illegal gambling operations. Prosecutors have alleged that the gambling organizers are taking advantage of Turkish laws restricting the ability of police to permanently close the offices of political groups.