24 October 2025
The Istanbul Criminal Judgeship of Peace appointed the Savings Deposit Insurance Fund (TMSF) as a trustee to ABC Radyo Televizyon ve Dijital Yayıncılık A.Ş., the company holding the broadcasting rights of TELE1 TV channel.
In a statement by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, it was noted that “the suspect Merdan Yanardağ, editor-in-chief of the TV channel TELE1, was detained on charges of espionage, and it was found that through his statements and actions, he committed multiple crimes related to the investigation; that he was the de facto user of the channel; that although his son Alp Yanardağ is registered as the owner of the company, the suspect used TELE1 TV channel in the commission of these crimes. Therefore, a decision has been issued by the Istanbul Criminal Judgeship of Peace for the appointment of the Savings Deposit Insurance Fund (TMSF) as a trustee to ABC Radyo Televizyon ve Dijital Yayıncılık A.Ş.”
Following the court order, the trustee delegation entered the channel during its main news bulletin and ordered the broadcast to be halted. The live news was cut short, and the channel switched to pre-recorded content. Internal staff communication channels were also shut down by the trustee.
