One of the country's most wanted men might never face justice in an Australian court despite the accused drug lord's capture in Turkey.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Hakan Ayik, 43, was one of 37 men arrested in Istanbul on Thursday for their alleged roles in a global organised crime ring distributing drugs to a dozen nations.
Turkish authorities said Ayik and one of New Zealand's most wanted men, Duax Hohepa Ngakuru, took over the Comanchero bikie gang's global operations last year.
Each of the 37 men has been charged over activities in Turkey, delaying any potential extradition to face Australian charges.
Australian Federal Police acting Deputy Commissioner Grant Nicholls described Ayik and his alleged accomplices as "global threats" who had been behind some of the world's biggest drug shipments.
"Through the partnership that we have with the Turkish national police ... we've seen there are a significant amount of serious organised criminals that are currently sitting in jail cells," he told reporters on Friday.
Also known as Joseph Ayik and Hakan Reis, Ayik is one of five people on NSW's most wanted list.
He was added to that list in 2011, a year after fleeing Australia for Cyprus via Korea, over the alleged supply of $230 million worth of heroin.
Cypriot authorities arrested him in 2010 but he vanished after being granted bail.
More recently, while based in Turkey, he unwittingly became a key distributor of the AN0M encrypted app, which was secretly operated by the FBI to observe organised crime figures.
The Trojan-horse software has led to charges against almost 400 people in Australia alone.
Two other "masterminds of misery" stopped in Turkey had known each other since attending school in the Sydney suburb of Kogarah, police said.
Ngakuru was on an Interpol red notice issued by New Zealand, while Turkish interior minister Ali Yerlikaya also said Hakan Arif Tavukcu was nabbed on an Australian-issued red notice.
Thursday's arrests and seizure of 4.5 billion Turkish lira ($246 million) were the culmination of a three-year operation between Australian Federal Police based in Ankara and their Turkish counterparts.
Police conservatively estimate the criminal group allegedly orchestrated the shipment of 10 to 15 tonnes of illicit drugs.
Those operations had put them on the radar of police in Australia, New Zealand, Colombia, the Netherlands, Spain, Lebanon, South Africa, Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong and Korea.
"They may have believed they were untouchable, they may have believed they could evade justice," Mr Nicholls said.
"This is one of the biggest mistakes organised crime can make."
Australian Associated Press
