Turkey’s state-run Savings Deposit Insurance Fund (TMSF) announced a tender to sell the “Maydonoz Döner Group Commercial and Economic Integrity” with a base price of ₺2.801 billion (≈$68 million), while the Interior Ministry reported 41 new detentions in nationwide operations targeting alleged followers of the faith-based Gülen movement
The sale package covers more than 390 Maydonoz Döner restaurants across Turkey and the My Fried Chicken franchise, alongside assets of several related companies—Somca Gıda, Altı G Gıda, Sümer Entegre Et, Enerca Gıda and Deta Ambalaj—to be sold together as a single lot. Prospective bidders must lodge a ₺280.1 million guarantee. The process starts with sealed bids and, if needed, negotiations after an open auction. Applications close Oct. 14, 2025 (16:00), with the auction set for Oct. 15, 2025 (11:00) at TMSF’s Esentepe HQ in Istanbul.
TMSF was appointed trustee to Maydonoz Döner in February amid an investigation alleging the chain was used to finance the Gülen movement; authorities have since conducted multiple waves of arrests connected to the case. The fund says the brand operates in five countries with 390+ outlets..
In a parallel development, Interior Minister Ali Yerlikaya said 41 people were detained over the past 10 days in raids across 21 provinces, accusing them of maintaining contact with purported senior Gülenists and using “safe houses” to avoid arrest. The courts arrested 25 of the detainees, and seven were released under judicial control; proceedings continue for the remainder.
The actions come amid a broader post-2016 policy of seizing and liquidating assets linked by authorities to the Gülen network—designated a terrorist organization by Ankara in May 2016—and an ongoing campaign of arrests and prosecutions that intensified after the July 2016 coup attempt. The movement denies involvement in the putsch or any terrorist activity.
Scope of auctions and prosecutions: Earlier this year TMSF sold Bellona—a major furniture brand formerly under Boydak Holding—for ₺8.1 billion and has slated İstikbal Mobilya for auction with a ₺12.5 billion valuation on Sept. 30, 2025. Rights groups say such disposals amount to politically motivated expropriations; officials defend them as lawful.
According to figures published by the Justice Ministry in July, Turkish courts have delivered 126,796 convictions in Gülen-related cases since 2016; 11,085 people remain incarcerated, with investigations continuing for 58,000 suspects and proceedings ongoing for another 24,000.
Ankara’s actions defy the spirit—if not the letter—of the Grand Chamber judgment in Yüksel Yalçınkaya v. Türkiye (Sept. 26, 2023), where the European Court of Human Rights held that Turkey’s Gülen-related prosecutions rely on systemic violations, including convictions based on ByLock metadata and other presumptions that breach Articles 6 (fair trial), 7 (no punishment without law) and 11 (freedom of association) of the Convention. The Court flagged a systemic problem affecting tens of thousands of cases.
Major NGOs continue to document due-process abuses and terrorism charges for peaceful, non-violent activities, reinforcing concerns that post-2016 prosecutions function as a tool to punish dissent and belief.
