Arrest orders have been issued against several referees, assistant referees and the president of an unnamed Süper Lig club by Turkish prosecutors following an investigation into alleged betting on top-level football matches.
At least 18 of the 21 suspects have been detained following a coordinated early-morning raid, according to the state-owned Anadolu news agency.
Istanbul’s chief prosecutor’s office said the 17 referees arrested in Istanbul and 11 other provinces were being investigated for other charges in addition to a possible charge of “influencing the outcome of the match.”
The arrests and warrants come just a week after the Turkish Football Federation (TFF) suspended 149 referees and assistant referees following an investigation which found that numerous bets on football matches were being placed in charge of officials working in Turkey’s professional leagues.
TFF president Ibrahim Hasiosmanoglu described the situation as a “moral crisis in Turkish football”.
In response, through a joint statement on Wednesday, the referees called the allegations “outrageous allegations”.
He insisted on not placing any bets on the matches he was umpiring, leading some to claim that his betting activities occurred while he was an amateur referee.
What did the Istanbul Prosecutor’s Office say about the arrests?
A statement from Istanbul’s chief prosecutor’s office on Friday said the arrest was ordered on the grounds of abuse of duty and manipulation of match results.
According to several local outlets including Cumhuriyet newspaper, The statement also said Murat Ozkaya, president of Turkish Süper Lig club Eyepspor, and former Kasimpasa owner Fatih Sarac are also being questioned as part of the investigation.
A man is facing arrest for spreading misleading information on social media.
Why are Turkish referees under investigation?
Last week, TFF president Ibrahim Hasiosmanoglu announced that a government agency had uncovered large-scale illegal betting on top football matches across the country.
The agency had determined that out of 571 active referees in the country, 371 had betting accounts and 152 had allegedly placed bets on football matches. 22 of them were referees in the top leagues.
One referee allegedly bet 18,227 times, and 42 referees were each accused of betting on more than 1,000 football matches.
In its independent investigation, the TFF’s disciplinary board has already imposed bans ranging from 8–12 months to 149 officials for their involvement in betting activity.
Edited by: Kieran Burke