Australia's most-wanted fugitive, who unwittingly helped police build cases against more than 200 suspected criminals in that country alone, has been urged to turn himself in rather than risk being killed by rival gangsters.
Hakan Ayik, who is believed to be hiding in Turkey, has been on the run and living outside of Australia for at least a decade. He is suspected of being a major player in Australia's illegal narcotics trade.
Mr Ayik unknowingly distributed an FBI Trojan horse app to his associates, a messaging app called Anom, which allowed Australian Federal Police and the FBI to view tens of thousands of messages from suspected criminals.
The operation has led to 224 arrests in Australia and the seizure of 3.7 tonnes of drugs, 104 weapons and $35 million in cash.
Australian authorities said up to 21 murders had been prevented in the country because of intelligence gathered from the app, including hits on members of two major mob families.
Mr Ayik was given the device by undercover agents and recommended the app to his associates. It was presented as a way for criminals to send encrypted messages.
The app was sold on the black market and people could only gain access if they were referred through an existing criminal user or had a distributor who could vouch for them.
On Tuesday, Australian Federal Police Commissioner Reece Kershaw issued a public warning to Mr Ayik that he is now a marked man and should turn himself in to Australian authorities immediately.
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“Given the threat he faces, he's best off handing himself into us as soon as he can. He was one of the co-ordinators of this particular device, so he's essentially set up his own colleagues,” he said.
Mr Ayik is believed to be living in Turkey after evading an Interpol arrest warrant in 2010.
From 2008 to 2010, Operation Hoffman allowed authorities to tackle a drug dealing network throughout Australia, in the New South Wales Police and prison system, in the country's ports, and overseas.
The inquiry, led by the Australian Crime Commission with crucial contributions from the New South Wales and West Australian police, the Australian Federal Police, the NSW Crime Commission and the nation's anti-money laundering agency, Austrac, revealed the extent of organised crime in Australia and the difficulty authorities faced in fighting globalised gangsters.
Mr Ayik became known as the "Facebook gangster" because of his fondness for self-promotion. He posted gym photos and travel videos showing him in Turkey and Hong Kong.
He also showed himself taking a helicopter ride, watching a Formula One Grand Prix and firing a semi-automatic pistol at a shooting range.
Another video showed him travelling to Hong Kong with Daux Ngakuru, a senior figure in Sydney's Comanchero outlaw biker gang.
Mr Ayik also posted a photograph of himself on this trip with Mark Ho, a Chinese mob operative linked to the Triads, who served a prison stint in Australia in 2001 for trafficking heroin.
An investigation by The Sydney Morning Herald, The Age and 60 Minutesthis month tracked Mr Ayik down and found that he owned a hotel in Istanbul and other high-end properties. They reported he had changed his name and changed his appearance with plastic surgery.
The report said: “Whatever his name, and regardless of his glamorous new life, Australian police are still pressing to arrest and extradite the man once known as the Facebook gangster."
Following the Anom sting, Mr Ayik has not only attracted the attention of Interpol – having been on their most wanted list since 2010 – but also organised criminals across Australia and perhaps further afield.
The specs: 2018 Volkswagen Teramont
Price, base / as tested Dh137,000 / Dh189,950
Engine 3.6-litre V6
Gearbox Eight-speed automatic
Power 280hp @ 6,200rpm
Torque 360Nm @ 2,750rpm
Fuel economy, combined 11.7L / 100km
The%20specs
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The bio
Favourite book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Favourite travel destination: Maldives and south of France
Favourite pastime: Family and friends, meditation, discovering new cuisines
Favourite Movie: Joker (2019). I didn’t like it while I was watching it but then afterwards I loved it. I loved the psychology behind it.
Favourite Author: My father for sure
Favourite Artist: Damien Hurst
The%20specs
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The years Ramadan fell in May
In numbers: PKK’s money network in Europe
Germany: PKK collectors typically bring in $18 million in cash a year – amount has trebled since 2010
Revolutionary tax: Investigators say about $2 million a year raised from ‘tax collection’ around Marseille
Extortion: Gunman convicted in 2023 of demanding $10,000 from Kurdish businessman in Stockholm
Drug trade: PKK income claimed by Turkish anti-drugs force in 2024 to be as high as $500 million a year
Denmark: PKK one of two terrorist groups along with Iranian separatists ASMLA to raise “two-digit million amounts”
Contributions: Hundreds of euros expected from typical Kurdish families and thousands from business owners
TV channel: Kurdish Roj TV accounts frozen and went bankrupt after Denmark fined it more than $1 million over PKK links in 2013
What the law says
Micro-retirement is not a recognised concept or employment status under Federal Decree Law No. 33 of 2021 on the Regulation of Labour Relations (as amended) (UAE Labour Law). As such, it reflects a voluntary work-life balance practice, rather than a recognised legal employment category, according to Dilini Loku, senior associate for law firm Gateley Middle East.
“Some companies may offer formal sabbatical policies or career break programmes; however, beyond such arrangements, there is no automatic right or statutory entitlement to extended breaks,” she explains.
“Any leave taken beyond statutory entitlements, such as annual leave, is typically regarded as unpaid leave in accordance with Article 33 of the UAE Labour Law. While employees may legally take unpaid leave, such requests are subject to the employer’s discretion and require approval.”
If an employee resigns to pursue micro-retirement, the employment contract is terminated, and the employer is under no legal obligation to rehire the employee in the future unless specific contractual agreements are in place (such as return-to-work arrangements), which are generally uncommon, Ms Loku adds.
Terror attacks in Paris, November 13, 2015
- At 9.16pm, three suicide attackers killed one person outside the Atade de France during a foootball match between France and Germany
- At 9.25pm, three attackers opened fire on restaurants and cafes over 20 minutes, killing 39 people
- Shortly after 9.40pm, three other attackers launched a three-hour raid on the Bataclan, in which 1,500 people had gathered to watch a rock concert. In total, 90 people were killed
- Salah Abdeslam, the only survivor of the terrorists, did not directly participate in the attacks, thought to be due to a technical glitch in his suicide vest
- He fled to Belgium and was involved in attacks on Brussels in March 2016. He is serving a life sentence in France
Mina Cup winners
Under 12 – Minerva Academy
Under 14 – Unam Pumas
Under 16 – Fursan Hispania
Under 18 – Madenat
Anghami
Started: December 2011
Co-founders: Elie Habib, Eddy Maroun
Based: Beirut and Dubai
Sector: Entertainment
Size: 85 employees
Stage: Series C
Investors: MEVP, du, Mobily, MBC, Samena Capital
UNSC Elections 2022-23
Seats open:
- Two for Africa Group
- One for Asia-Pacific Group (traditionally Arab state or Tunisia)
- One for Latin America and Caribbean Group
- One for Eastern Europe Group
Countries so far running:
