LONDON, (Parliament Politics Magazine) – A Turkish millionaire claims Prince Andrew falsely interpreted her payment as a wedding gift for his daughter Princess Beatrice.
At the High Court in London, Nehebat Isbilen claims that her business adviser Selman Turk dishonestly plundered £38 million of her assets.
Mrs Isbilen paid Prince Andrew £750,000 and claims Mr Turk misled her bank into believing it was a wedding gift.
Princess Beatrice and Prince Andrew have not been accused of any crime.
The £750,000 has now been restored to Mrs Isbilen by the Duke of York.
Mr Turk has denied the charges levelled against him.
Tracking down her funds
The allegations that Mrs Isbilen’s money was improperly exploited by her business adviser, Mr Turk, are at the centre of this complicated judicial case.
Mrs. Isbilen, 77, comes from a wealthy Turkish business family, but after her politician husband was imprisoned, she sought help in transferring her assets out of Turkey.
However, allegations that Mr Turk “misappropriated” her assets have been heard in the High Court, and her attorneys have been attempting to locate and retrieve her funds.
This indicated that significant sums had been given to Prince Andrew and Sarah, Duchess of York, according to court documents.
Mrs Isbilen claims Mr Turk urged her to make a £750,000 “gift” to Prince Andrew, which she was made to believe was for help with her passport.
On November 15, 2019, this sum was transferred from her account.
“The representation that Mrs Isbilen required to make a contribution to the Duke of York in connection with her passport [or for any other purpose] was untrue,” her legal team claims.
However, according to Mrs Isbilen’s affidavit, she had seen an email from Mr Turk to her bank explaining that £750,000 had been paid as a “wedding gift” for the Prince’s daughter, Princess Beatrice.
Mrs Isbilen claims in her affidavit that this claim was completely false.
Mr Turk’s firm had also won an award at the Pitch at the Palace business initiative which Prince Andrew heads a week before Mrs Isbilen paid him.
The continuing court case has elicited no response from Prince Andrew’s representatives.
The Duchess of York’s spokesman said that the allegations against Mr Turk that have since surfaced were absolutely unknown to the Duchess. She was naturally concerned about the allegations levelled against him.
More payments
Claims have been heard by the court of more payments by a business named Alphabet Capital to the the Duke and Duchess of York.
Mrs Isbilen’s money was deposited into this firm in two instalments, according to court documents, despite her assertion that “I did not know about or authorise either of these payments.”
This corporation then sent payments to Prince Andrew and his ex-wife Sarah, with Isbilen’s lawyer, Peters and Peters, naming Prince Andrew received an amount of £350,000.
Following a court order allowing a search of Mr Turk’s financial affairs, payments to Prince Andrew were discovered.
Mr Turk justified some of the expenses to professional fees and failed investments, according to court documents, but there were still claims for considerable sums that needed to be explained.
Mrs Isbilen’s lawyer, Jonathan Tickner, said she had been the victim of major fraud and financial malfeasance and was adamant about pursuing her claim against all parties involved.
According to court filings, Mr Turk denies the charges and disagrees with Mrs Isbilen’s interpretation of how her assets were handled.
