Turkish Cypriot man accused of laundering money for Australian drug baron

A Turkish Cypriot man accused of laundering money for Australian drug baron, Mark Buddle has been arrested by the authorities and taken to court.

The suspect only identified as B.A., was arraigned in a Lefkosa court on Monday on charges of money laundering.

Police officer who testified in court said the suspect had sold three apartments to Buddle but had failed to report these transactions to the TRNC authorities.

Responding to the accusations, the suspect told the court that he had not received any payment from Buddle for his services adding that he did not know that Buddle was a major drug dealer.

His lawyer pointed out that the North Cyprus authorities had granted residence permits to Buddle, and it is not illegal to make an agreement with a person who has been granted a residence permit.

Police told the court that Buddle had been found in a house owned by B.A. and requested that the suspect be released on bail conditions including a ban on leaving the country. 

The suspect and his lawyer objected, stating that they have three companies in Turkey and that a travel ban would have a negative impact on those businesses.

The judge postponed the bail decision for the suspect until Tuesday and issued a travel ban order. 

Recall that Australian citizen Mark Buddle, who was head of the Comanchero gang was arrested by the TRNC authorities in July, 2022 and extradited to Turkey where he was then deported from Turkey to Australia in August, 2022. Buddle was arrested on arrival at Darwin airport charged with attempting to smuggle 40 million dollars worth of cocaine into Melbourne.