Turkish Banker jailed for conspiring to violate U.S. Sanctions against Iran and other offences

In 2018, Mehmet Hakan Atilla, a former executive at the bank, was convicted by a U.S. federal court for his role in a scheme to help Iran evade U.S. sanctions.

As a result of this scheme, ATILLA and his co-conspirators induced U.S. banks to process international financial transactions in violation of the IEEPA unknowingly and to launder funds promoting the scheme through the U.S. economic system.

Atilla was the Deputy General Manager of Halkbank, and others conspired.

• To provide access to restricted oil revenues through international financial networks, including U.S. financial institutions, to the government of Iran, Iranian entities, and entities identified by the Department of the Treasury Office of Foreign Assets Control as Specially Designated Nationals (SDNs).

 They did so by,   

• Using Turkish Bank-1, at which ATILLA served as Deputy General Manager of International Banking, to engage in transactions involving billions of dollars’ worth of petroleum revenues held by the Central Bank of Iran and the National Iranian Oil Company.

They facilitated and protected the ability of Turkish Bank-1 customer, international gold trader Reza Zarrab,

• To supply currency and gold to, and facilitate global financial transactions for, the Government of Iran, Iranian entities, and SDNs using Turkish Bank-1. 

Many of those financial transactions involved unwitting U.S. financial institutions, in violation of U.S. sanctions against Iran. 

• The elaborate scheme established by ATILLA and others also shielded Turkish Bank-1 from U.S. sanctions.   

ATILLA in particular

• Lied to and deceived U.S. Treasury officials about Turkish Bank-1’s activities and its purported compliance efforts to avoid subjecting the bank to U.S. sanctions. 

Additionally,

• ATILLA, Zarrab, and others conspired to create and use false and fraudulent documents to disguise prohibited transactions for Iran and make those transactions falsely appear as transactions involving food, thus falling within humanitarian exceptions to the sanctions regime. 

Key Details on Atilla’s Case:

• Position: Atilla was the Deputy General Manager of Halkbank.
• Conviction: He was found guilty of:
• Conspiring to violate U.S. sanctions against Iran
• Bank fraud
• Defrauding U.S. financial institutions
• Sentence: He received 32 months in prison.
• Scheme Details:
• Atilla conspired with Reza Zarrab, a Turkish-Iranian gold trader, to move billions of dollars in Iranian oil revenue through deceptive transactions.
• These transactions were disguised as food and agricultural deals to bypass sanctions.
• Some of the funds passed through U.S. banks, giving U.S. authorities jurisdiction.
• Political Fallout:
• Zarrab testified that he paid over $50 million in bribes to Turkish officials, including the then-finance minister.
• He also claimed that President Erdoğan was aware of the scheme.
• The case strained U.S.–Turkey relations, with Erdoğan calling it a “judicial coup” and a “conspiracy” against Turkey.
• Aftermath:
• Atilla returned to Turkey after serving his sentence and was welcomed as a hero.
• He was later appointed to head Istanbul’s stock exchange.

Mehmet Hakan Atilla, References

• www.justice.gov https://www.justice.gov/usao-sdny/pr/turkish-banker-mehmet-hakan-atilla-sentenced-32-months-conspiring-violate-us-sanctions
• www.cbsnews.com https://www.cbsnews.com/news/turkish-banker-mehmet-hakan-atilla-convicted-iran-us-sanctions/
• en.wikipedia.org https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_States_v._Atilla
• www.courthousenews.com https://www.courthousenews.com/bygone-us-sentence-of-turkish-banker-hakan-atilla-affirmed/