Bride adorned with 52 kilograms of gold at her wedding in detention testifies against her husband

The testimony given to the prosecutor's office by Chagli Oz Tanchalan, the wife of Mehmet Fatih Tanchalan, known by the nickname “Black Haydar of Van,” has been revealed. She refuted her husband's statement that the wedding jewelry was “rented,” stating that the gold items were actually purchased. This was reported by “Haberler”.

According to Chagli Oz, the information that 43 million Turkish liras worth of jewelry and money were collected at the wedding is also untrue. She provided explanations regarding the money flows in the MASAK reports and the re-registration of luxury cars, accusing her husband of putting on a show of wealth by making non-existent funds appear real.

Were the jewelry items rented?

Chagli Oz rejected her husband's testimony that the gold items were rented, stating that they were bought. According to her, all the gold worn at the wedding was taken away by Mehmet Fatih Tanchalan at the end of the evening.

Later, these pieces of jewelry were found in a suitcase in the woodshed during a search conducted by law enforcement officers in Muradiye. Chagli Oz stated that she learned some of the bracelets were fake later through the news.

According to her testimony, a necklace and two bracelets were given to her at the engagement ceremony, while the tiara and belt were temporarily obtained from a jeweler. The necklace and bracelets were later bought by Mehmet Fatih Tanchalan and his family. These same pieces of jewelry were also worn by the bride herself at the wedding.

When Chagli Oz asked her husband why there was so much gold, he replied, “This is tribal territory, everyone wears this much gold at weddings.”

The announcement about 43 million liras

Chagli Oz stated that the wedding held in the city of Van on September 6 was organized by her husband, but she did not know from which funds the expenses were covered.

An announcement was made at the wedding that “43 million liras were collected along with gifts, jewelry brought to Haydar Bey's wedding, and money transferred via IBAN.” However, Chagli Oz stated that she was unaware of such an amount being collected, and most of the announced names were fabricated.

She emphasized that under her husband's instructions, announcements were also made about money that was not actually received. Chagli Oz stated that through this, her husband tried to show people that large sums of money were coming in.

Bank transactions are also being investigated

Chagli Oz was also questioned regarding the money transfers identified in MASAK investigations. She explained the money movements of nearly 1.5 million liras between herself and her husband as mutual loans.

She also stated that she sent nearly 5.2 million liras to her mother through 221 transactions, and these funds were provided for her mother's needs, rent, and daily expenses.

Around 6 million 69 thousand liras came from her mother through 303 transactions. Chagli Oz stated that this money consisted of funds previously given to her mother for safekeeping and withdrawn later when the need arose.

Money movements in the bank account of Mehmet Fatih Tanchalan's nephew, Muhammed Sait Tanchalan, were also explained. According to Chagli Oz, since her husband could not use his own bank accounts due to a child support lawsuit, he used his nephew's account in certain cases.

MASAK data revealed money movements amounting to 644 thousand liras across 11 transactions through this account.

The issue of luxury cars

The repeated re-registration of luxury cars among family members is also being examined in the investigation. MASAK assessed such actions as a “layering” process that may serve to conceal the source of assets, hinder financial tracking, and circumvent potential seizure measures.

Mehmet Fatih Tanchalan denied this, stating that the cars were registered in the names of family members for a short period to transfer special license plates to a new car. He stressed that these actions had nothing to do with money laundering.

He stated that he bought the luxury car registered in his name using income from his commercial activities.

Discrepancy between income and lifestyle

The MASAK report noted a discrepancy between Tanchalan's declared profit of nearly 1.1 million liras since 2020 and the lifestyle he displayed.

Chagli Oz stated that she earned income from social media and trading activities. According to her, she earned 2.5 million liras from the Trendyol platform solely by advertising cosmetic products in the last 3 months. She also emphasized that invoices were issued for these earnings.

Tanchalan stated that there might be an error in the MASAK report and expressed his readiness to rectify any shortcomings found in his tax or commercial declarations.

At the same time, Chagli Oz stressed that she had no involvement in illegal funds. According to her, her husband made non-existent funds appear real on social media and maintained a luxurious lifestyle sometimes by borrowing money.

The Van Chief Public Prosecutor's Office continues to examine MASAK data, bank transactions, the re-registration of luxury cars, the jewelry worn at the wedding, and the money movements between the suspects and their relatives.