Istanbul-Based 'Egg Trafficking Ring' Operation: 44 Detained, €2 Million in Transfers Detected

The number of detainees has risen to 44 in simultaneous operations conducted across 14 provinces centered in Istanbul; the investigation identified approximately €2 million in financial transfers.

Hacer Tekne, identified as the ringleader, paid women €60-80 in exchange for egg donations. It was alleged that Dr. Hayat İzel, a Cypriot physician who headed the clinic, received €100 per transfer. Women were found to travel abroad monthly, or 12 times per year, for transfer purposes.

Among donor candidates directed by Tekne were former sex workers, hostesses, university students, waiters, and textile workers. Women aged 22-32 were determined to have turned to this practice due to economic hardship.

It was established that women who agreed to donate underwent egg and uterine examinations by a suspect Dr. Soner S. in Istanbul's Pendik district and by 2 gynecologists in Ankara. Women who accepted injections and medication were placed in isolation houses for the egg development process, while those who refused were not accepted as donors. It was alleged that hormone injections used increased egg counts to as many as 40. Tekne's pharmacist boyfriend Muharrem Ş. was accused of providing the medications that increased egg counts and other drugs to the network.

Women were subjected to 10-15 day isolation periods before and after transfer procedures and were transported to Cyprus, Georgia, and Albania. Two donor women were caught at Sabiha Gökçen Airport upon their return from transfer procedures in Cyprus, bringing the number of detainees to 44. Nine suspects remain at large; four of them are donor women.

Hacer Tekne denied the accusations, stating that she herself was a donor and had provided advice to those in need of money. Police were also reported to have identified more than three similar networks in Istanbul.

In Turkey, egg donation and the buying and selling of reproductive cells are prohibited: the penalty is 3 to 5 years imprisonment and 1,000-2,000 days of judicial fine.