Fenerbahçe president detained after drug test returns positive

Steven Sadettin Saran, a businessperson and the president of Fenerbahçe Sports Club, was taken into custody this evening in connection with a narcotics investigation.

Saran is facing charges of using and facilitating the use of drugs, the İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office said in a written statement.

Saran’s test results returned positive earlier in the day, after undergoing a drug test over the weekend.

Reports said cocaine was detected in a hair sample taken from Saran, while no substances were found in blood, urine, or nail tests.

In a written statement issued after the results became public, Saran denied any use of the substance. “I have not used the substance in question, I have not even seen it closely,” he said and requested a repeat test to be conducted at the Forensic Medicine Institute.

Saran also noted that he would also take tests at internationally recognized independent institutions and share the results.

Information leaks despite confidentiality

Saran also drew attention to the leak of information from the case despite a confidentiality order. He said it was a serious matter that details said to belong to a confidential file were published “simultaneously and in a coordinated manner” by some outlets starting from the early hours of the morning when the test result was alleged to have emerged.

“I fully believe that the truth will emerge sooner or later, and that the process will be concluded in a fair and transparent manner within the framework of the rule of law,” he said.

Saran’s home was searched on Dec 19 as part of a wide-ranging drug investigation involving many people, including well-known journalists, social media figures, and businesspeople.

Earlier in the probe, eight people, including Habertürk TV editor-in-chief Mehmet Akif Ersoy, were detained on Dec 9 on charges of purchasing, accepting, or possessing narcotics or stimulants, and using such substances or providing space and means for their use. On Dec 10, four suspects were released under judicial supervision, while Ersoy and three others were arrested later that night.

On Dec 17, news anchor Ela Rümeysa Cebeci was also arrested. Some messages identified by the prosecutor’s office as exchanges between Cebeci and Saran were also leaked to parts of the media.

Saran was elected president of Fenerbahçe in September after defeating Ali Koç, who had led the club for seven years, at the club’s general assembly. (VK)