Two suspects were arrested in Istanbul under charges of selling counterfeit passports and ID cards to terrorist organization members and illegal migrants.
The suspects, Ö.Ş. (50) and Z.A.Ç. (57), had conned Turkish citizens to obtain personal information which they later sold to migrants who entered the country illegally.
The sale of the fake documents hindered officials from apprehending other suspects and finding stolen cars, gendarmerie said.
Istanbul Gendarmerie Command's team started the operation after receiving a tipoff about a printing shop in Istanbul's Fatih district. Officials seized various official documents such as birth certificates, driver's licenses, vehicle licenses, passports, residence permits, title deeds, diplomas and counterfeit money.
The operation revealed the relative ease of obtaining counterfeit identity documents in Istanbul.
The dealers are also suspected of selling fake documents to members of terror organizations such as Daesh, FETÖ and the PKK.
FETÖ is accused of orchestrating multiple coup attempts in Turkey, and its members face terror charges.
The PKK, founded in 1978, is listed as a terrorist organization by Turkey, the U.S. and the EU and has killed more than 1,200 people since 2015.
