Whistleblower in Malta-linked Turkish-Cypriot illegal gambling network murdered
- Cemil Ünal, a 41-year-old Turkish whistleblower, was shot dead on May 1, 2025, at a hotel terrace in Rijswijk, Netherlands.
- Ünal’s killing followed his exposure of a Malta-based illegal gambling network linked to slain Turkish-Cypriot businessman Halil Falyalı and implicated senior Turkish officials.
- After fleeing Turkey and arrest in the Netherlands, Ünal gave extensive interviews alleging systemic corruption, bribery payments, and compromising tapes involving Turkey’s ruling party figures.
- A lone, bearded gunman reportedly fired three shots at close range then fled; witnesses described the shooter as calm and unmasked, and police launched an intensive investigation.
- The assassination raises questions about possible political motives and protection failures while human rights groups call for transparency and international oversight of the investigation.
16 Articles
16 Articles
Murdered man on a terrace in Rijswijk turns out to be a Turkish criminal who could have been extradited at any moment
The man who was killed is the Turkish criminal Cemil Önal. He was previously the financial man of an illegal gambling empire in Northern Cyprus, who was suspected by the Turkish authorities of being behind the liquidation of the mafia boss Halil Falyali.
Rijswijk hotel murder: victim Cemil (41) warned the Public Prosecution Service 'several times before his death'
Cemil Önal (41), who was liquidated on Thursday at a hotel in Rijswijk, warned the Public Prosecution Service several times that his life was in danger. He feared being shot dead on the orders of the Turkish authorities because he allegedly had incriminating information about high-ranking politicians.
Whistleblower in Malta-linked Turkish-Cypriot illegal gambling network murdered
A whistleblower who exposed how Malta was used as a “base” for an alleged illegal betting network claimed to be worth €75 million monthly has been murdered.Cemil Önal was reportedly gunned down on the terrace of a hotel in the south of the Netherlands on Thursday evening.Dutch media reports he was shot at close range...
Man shot dead on the terrace of a hotel in Rijswijk, suspect on the run
A man was shot dead on the terrace of a hotel in Rijswijk (South Holland) just before 6 p.m. The owner of the hotel tells Omroep West that the victim was attacked at close range. That was captured on camera footage. “You see that a man without a face covering walks up, shoots and then runs off,” said the owner of the hotel. Search An eyewitness tells the regional broadcaster that he heard three blasts and then saw the shooter walk by. “The man h…
Murdered in the Netherlands a Turkish mobster wanted in Turkey for double murder
A Turkish citizen known as Cemil Önal, 41 years old, was killed by a gunman in the Netherlands in broad daylight, the Dutch police informed EFE this Friday that they are still investigating this incident that had as a victim a mobster wanted by Turkey for a double murder in the Turkish part of Cyprus in 2022.Önal, whose extradition Turkey had requested for his alleged criminal career in Northern Cyprus, was killed yesterday, when he was sitting …
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