Turkey has arrested Hakan Ayik, who is wanted in Australia, and 36 others who were involved in an "international armed organised crime organisation".
Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said on social media platform X that the arrests happened in Istanbul and tthe crime ring was allegedly involved in international drug trafficking and money laundering.
Yerlikaya said some of those arrested were sought by Australian, US and New Zealand authorities.
Ayik - dubbed the "Facebook gangster"- has been on the most wanted list in NSW for more than a decade, sought for the "supply of large commercial quantities of drugs".
Ayik, who is also known as Hakan Avik and Joseph Ayuk, has been wanted by authorities since leaving Australia in 2010.
In 2010, Australian police arrested associates of Ayik in relation to a large drug shipment. Ayik did not return from a trip to Hong Kong and Interpol issued a warrant for his arrest.
Ayik was arrested in Cyprus in December 2010 but disappeared after being granted bail.
A US Federal Bureau of Investigation indictment unsealed in 2021 says that Ayik was one of three administrators and four influencers identified in establishing and popularising the An0m app among criminal networks.
Users thought the app was encrypted but it was actually controlled by the FBI who could monitor their conversations.
with AAP
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