Sadettin Saran, president of Fenerbahce Istanbul, was taken into custody on Christmas Eve as part of a drug investigation. According to state media, however, he has already been released.
On Wednesday evening, Fenerbahce confirmed that club president Sadettin Saran had “gone to the Maslak Provincial Gendarmerie in his own vehicle as part of ongoing legal proceedings on the instructions and under the supervision of the competent authorities.”
Turkish media quoted a statement from the Attorney General’s Office saying that Saran, who has been in office since September, had been taken into custody on suspicion of drug trafficking, aiding and abetting drug use, and drug use, and on the basis of “additional evidence” obtained in the ongoing proceedings.
Saran writes of a “clear smear campaign”
According to reports, Saran tested positive for cocaine in a hair sample. He stated in a post on his social media account that he had “never consumed the substance that allegedly tested positive in the Institute of Forensic Medicine’s test.” The 61-year-old wrote of a “clear smear campaign” against him. The club pledged its support for Saran. Fans also gathered around the courthouse on Thursday, where the official was scheduled to testify again in the morning. “At this stage of the proceedings, we urge all Fenerbahce supporters to trust the respected Turkish judiciary and to remain calm,” Fenerbahce said in a second statement late on Wednesday evening. According to the club, the first statement of this kind, issued three hours earlier, had led to misunderstandings among the public.
On Thursday, state media reported that Saran had been released on judicial conditions. After his testimony on Thursday, an Istanbul court ordered Saran to report to a police station twice a week. According to Anadolu Ajansi, he also remains subject to a travel ban imposed earlier in the investigation.
The Istanbul Public Prosecutor’s Office has been conducting drug investigations for several weeks, which have also focused on well-known personalities. Saran had already been released on bail last Saturday after several tests and his statement to the public prosecutor’s office.