A case has been filed against 66 suspects, including the leader and members of the international armed organized crime group "Comanchero," with prison sentences of up to 262 years.
The indictment, prepared by the Money Laundering Crime Investigation Office of the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, outlines the extensive criminal activities of the "Comanchero Outlaw Motorcycle Gang," an organization known for its violent and illicit operations.
The group was founded in 1968 by Jock Ross in Australia and has been heavily involved in global drug trafficking since its inception. The indictment highlights how the gang grew rapidly, gathering violent individuals under the slogan "respect, brotherhood, loyalty."
Lebanese-born Mahmoud Mick Hawi took over leadership of the gang in 2000 and led the group through several gang wars in Sydney. After Hawi’s mysterious murder in 2018, Mark Dougles Buddle, known as "Gaddar," assumed control. Under Buddle’s reign, violent conflicts continued until his arrest. He was captured in the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus in 2022 and handed over to Australian authorities.
Following Buddle’s arrest, Joseph Hakan Ayık and Duax Hohepa Ngakuru took over the leadership of the organization, which continued its criminal activities. Among the suspects are both Turkish nationals and international members, using a secret encrypted communication program called "Anom Enterprise" to facilitate drug trafficking and money laundering.
The Anom program enabled the syndicate to coordinate the import, export and distribution of illicit drugs across countries such as Australia, Hong Kong, New Zealand and the Netherlands. The data decrypted from Anom helped expose a global drug network, revealing that drugs from South America were funneled through South Korea and South Africa. Between 2019 and 2021, law enforcement agencies in multiple countries seized 3,812 kilograms of drugs, primarily through cooperation between U.S. and Australian federal police.
The case also uncovered the group's extensive money laundering operations. According to reports from the Financial Crimes Investigation Board (MASAK), the suspects established companies in various sectors, including real estate and currency exchange, often through associates.
These companies were used to launder illicit funds and obscure the origins of large sums of money. One notable example is the case of Joseph Hakan Ayık, a central figure in the gang, who was found to have established a hotel and invested in various businesses in Türkiye. Despite these business dealings, Ayık’s financial profile appeared modest, with investigations revealing significant unexplained transfers of money into his accounts.
Ayık, along with 13 other suspects, faces sentences ranging from 36 to 74 years. The leader, Ayık, is particularly charged with leading a criminal organization, trafficking drugs and laundering money, and could face up to 262 years in prison. Additional suspects, totaling 52 individuals, are charged with membership in the criminal organization and money laundering, facing sentences of eight to 18 years.
