TKP files criminal complaint against those involved in fund fraud

The investment fund scandal in Turkey erupted in August–September 2026 after several investment funds became unable to meet investors’ requests to withdraw their money. At the center of the investigation are allegations that the prices of some thinly traded stocks were artificially inflated through investment funds, causing them to be valued far above their real worth. When investors began making large withdrawal requests, the underlying liquidity problem became apparent. The Capital Markets Board (SPK) subsequently ordered the liquidation of 131 funds managed by a number of portfolio companies.Reports say the scandal has affected around 455,000–500,000 investors and assets worth approximately $20 billion.

So far, over 200 people have reportedly been investigated and over 50 arrested, while new detention orders are being issued. The political dimension of the scandal grew further after Fatma Betül Sayan Kaya, an AKP deputy chair and former minister, stepped down amid allegations concerning large-scale stock sales shortly before the market collapse. An investigation into former SPK chairman İbrahim Ömer Gönül over alleged abuse of office has also brought the issue of public regulatory oversight directly into the controversy.

Despite the fact that AKP member Fatma Betül Sayan Kaya was found to have committed fraud, not only has she not been detained or arrested, but not even a single step has been taken to obtain a statement from her.

No action can be taken against the son of AKP Deputy Chairman Hayati Yazıcı, and no comprehensive investigation is being conducted, or can be conducted, into the allegations made against another AKP Deputy Chairman, Nihat Zeybekci.

"Since the embezzlement was uncovered, we have detained hundreds of people and arrested dozens," says the government, yet it persistently refuses to pursue its own embezzlers and those responsible for the biggest scams.

The Communist Party of Turkey (TKP) , reacting to this situation , filed a criminal complaint against Fatma Betül Sayan Kaya, her husband İlyas Kaya, and " all public officials and participants who, during the investigation, will be identified as having allocated, approved, or turned a blind eye to this political/financial organization with public power, control mechanisms, capital market instruments, and investment funds ."

The TKP (Communist Party of Turkey) leveled six charges against those involved: Information misuse (Law No. 6362, Article 106), Transaction and information-based market manipulation (Law No. 6362, Articles 107/1-107/2), Qualified fraud (Turkish Penal Code Article 158/1-d, h) (Mass plunder by using public institutions and organizations as tools, and by deceptive conduct against an indefinite number of people through political influence), Influence peddling and abuse of office (Turkish Penal Code Articles 255 / 257), Establishing and managing an organization for the purpose of committing crimes (Turkish Penal Code Article 220), Money laundering of assets derived from crime (Turkish Penal Code Article 282).

The criminal complaint, which states that the TKP (Communist Party of Turkey) is fighting politically and legally against crimes of unjust enrichment and corruption, and that it was prepared by the decision of the party's Central Committee for the purpose of effectively investigating Fatma Betül Sayan Kaya, a member of the ruling party and former minister, includes the following statement: " While it is a concrete reality that our country has faced severe impoverishment and worsening conditions of exploitation in recent years, the fact that a former minister has earned 2 billion TL through 'stock market fraud' is a situation that should be investigated in terms of both the Capital Markets Board (SPK), the Turkish Penal Code (TCK), and political ethics ."

The criminal complaint included the following striking statements:

"Those who occupied political offices knew precisely that those funds would buy this stock, who would give the purchase orders, and that this money would ultimately come out of the pockets of the teachers, workers, and retirees who invested in those funds."

Therefore, this is not a matter of 'intuition,' but rather a direct 'knowledge of the outcome and aiming for it.' What we are witnessing is not accidental enrichment, but an organized activity whose steps have been meticulously planned and whose ultimate result has been deliberate from the very beginning.

…The system is designed to make the ill-gotten gains of those with political influence untouchable and to transfer the savings of tens of thousands of citizens with such impunity.

Therefore, regulatory institutions are not passive observers of this criminal system; through their inaction, silence, and willful blindness, they are structural partners who pave the way for this organization. In the context of Article 158/1-d of the Turkish Penal Code, the expression "the use of public institutions as tools in the commission of crime" precisely points to this institutional paralysis: Public power has been placed at the center of the crime, not to protect the well-being, will, and savings of the people, but to become the legal tool and shield of this plunder mechanism that impoverishes the people."

Mert Doğan, one of the lawyers representing the TKP (Communist Party of Turkey) who filed the criminal complaint, told soL Haber: "The allegations that have come to light are extremely serious. It cannot be considered a personal crime for someone who served in the previous government and is currently a member of the Central Executive Committee of the ruling party to commit a 2.2 billion TL stock market fraud. In this respect, it is very likely that the current investigation will be incomplete. Therefore, in line with our responsibility to our people, we have prepared a very detailed criminal complaint today and submitted it to the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office. We will demand accountability for the money stolen from our people with the power given to us by the ruling party. The law is only one leg; as a party, we are pursuing corruption and theft, and we are on the heels of thieves everywhere."

Announcing the decision to file a criminal complaint, the TKP (Communist Party of Turkey) stated, "For nearly a month, we have been facing a massive robbery and plunder that has occupied the country's agenda, caused tens of thousands of our citizens to be victimized, and is known in the public as the 'funding crisis'."

The statement, which pointed out that the market system is a system of great immorality, exploitation, and plunder, said: "Holding those responsible for this great plunder accountable is only possible by escalating the struggle against the market system and the dominance of capital. The AKP government is responsible and guilty as the executor of this system of exploitation and plunder. While the Communist Party of Turkey is expanding its struggle against this system of exploitation and plunder, it is also fighting politically and legally to hold those responsible for the resulting unjust gains and corruption accountable. In this regard, we filed a criminal complaint today to ensure the effective investigation of Fatma Betül Sayan Kaya, a member of the ruling party and former minister."