Sedat Peker, born in 1971, is a prominent Turkish mafia boss and self-proclaimed pan-Turkist who gained significant international attention as a whistle-blower. His criminal history includes an acquittal for murder in 1997, followed by a surprisingly lenient sentence in 1998 after surrendering—allegedly in exchange for information on then-PM Mesut Yılmaz's gambling debts—and later convictions for leading a criminal organization in 2007 and 2013, though he was often quickly released.
After fleeing Turkey in early 2020, Peker began releasing a series of YouTube videos in May 2021, making shocking allegations against high-ranking Turkish politicians and government figures. He accused former Interior Minister Mehmet Ağar and his son Tolga Ağar of murder, rape, and drug trafficking, also implicating former Prime Minister Binali Yıldırım's son Erkam in international drug schemes. Furthermore, Peker alleged that the private military company SADAT was involved in arms shipments to Syrian rebel groups, bringing to light alleged "deep state" activities that have sparked considerable public and political debate.