Turkish security teams arrest 97 suspects for looting quake-hit properties

By Ferdi Turkten

ANKARA (AA) - Turkish security forces have arrested at least 97 suspects for allegedly looting damaged buildings after powerful earthquakes shook the region, sources said Monday.

According to sources who spoke on condition of anonymity due to media restrictions, the chief public prosecutor's office launched an investigation over incidents of "robbery, looting, abuse of trust and fraud using information systems."

The suspects have been arrested over 232 separate incidents across 11 provinces and 22 others were sentenced to judicial control injunctions, sources said.

At least 31,643 people were killed and over 80,000 others wounded after the magnitude 7.7 and 7.6 earthquakes struck southern Türkiye within the space of less than 10 hours on Feb. 6, affecting around 13 million people, according to the latest official figures.

The earthquakes, centered in Kahramanmaras, also hit nine other provinces – Hatay, Gaziantep, Adiyaman, Malatya, Adana, Diyarbakir, Kilis, Osmaniye and Sanliurfa.

Several countries in the region, including Syria and Lebanon, also felt the strong tremors.

In neighboring Syria, the death toll has climbed above 3,500, with more than 5,200 people injured.

*Writing by Merve Aydogan