Washington, D.C. – U.S. Senator Ron Wyden and several Democratic colleagues today probed the Department of Justice for dismissing criminal charges against a Turkish bank for knowingly participating in a scheme to evade U.S. sanctions on Iran by concealing billions of dollars and providing a financial lifeline that supports the country’s global terrorism efforts.
“The timing of this agreement, coinciding with President Trump’s initiation of a war against Iran that he justified in part by citing Iran’s history of terrorist attacks against U.S. citizens, makes the Department’s decision even more incomprehensible. We also note President Trump’s and President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s personal, financial, and familial interests in ending the prosecution,” Wyden and his colleagues wrote in a letter to acting Attorney General Todd Blanche.
Since 2019, the DOJ has accused Halkbank of illegally helping Iran create a slush fund of more than $20 billion through transactions that have dated back to 2012 and were designed to evade U.S. sanctions and mislead regulators. Last month, the DOJ agreed to a settlement that included no admission of liability by Halkbank, no fines or penalties, and no compensation for U.S. victims of state-sponsored terrorism.
“The sanctions evasion scheme, involving billions of dollars, was a critical financial lifeline for the Iranian regime during the same years it carried out wide-scale global terrorist activities, which included the kidnapping, torture, and murder of Americans. As the government’s own attorneys noted in the sentencing memorandum for criminal co-defendant Atilla, hundreds of millions of dollars worth of these illicit financial transactions were processed by U.S. banks,” the letter continued.
Specifically, Wyden and his colleagues are seeking answers on: whether Donald Trump or other senior administration officials were pressured to resolve these allegations against Halkbank; why Halkhank did not have to make any legal payments after evading U.S. sanctions; how the DOJ will ensure Halkbank stops laundering money to Iran; and how the Administration will properly address its devastating impact on U.S. victims of state-sponsored terrorism.
Also signing the letter were Senator Adam Schiff, D-Calif., Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., Senator Richard Blumenthal, D-Conn., and Senator Raphael Warnock, D-Ga..
The text of the letter is here.
A web version of this release is here.
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