Statements from a friend of the perpetrator of the deadly attack on an Istanbul nightclub that killed 39 people reveals that the terrorist was never a religious person and got in touch with Daesh in order to earn money after going bankrupt
Statements from a friend of Daesh terrorist Abdulgadir Masharipov, the perpetrator of the deadly attack on an Istanbul nightclub during new year's celebrations, has revealed the details of Masharipov's life before he joined to the terrorist organization.
Kadim B., a friend of Masharipov, said that his friend was not a religious person and used to drink alcohol and go out at night.
"He didn't have any connection with the region. He had never performed prayers, as he was not a religious person at all," Kadim B. said to Turkish Yeni Şafak newspaper in a phone call.
"He used to have a mobile phone shop. Then he went to Russia to do business, but he went bankrupt there. After a while, we heard that he got in touch with the [Daesh] terrorist organization," Kadim B. said.
"All of his friends broke off relations with him in 2010. In 2015, he started to send us inconsistent text messages calling us to join the terrorist organization, saying he was earning a lot of money due to his contribution to terrorist activities," he said.
"None of us texted back to him. We don't know what exactly he had been through, but we all stand by the Turkish nation, which suffered from this horrible terrorist attack," Masharipov's old friend said.
Meanwhile, as many as nine of the 14 Daesh suspects were arrested for their links to the New Year's Eve terror attack on Istanbul's Reina nightclub after appearing in court in Istanbul on Tuesday.
The arrested included Ilyas Mamasharipov, who shared the same flat with Masharipov for 20 days and allegedly planned the brutal attack.
Previously, 21 others were arrested in Izmir and Istanbul for their links to the attack.
Masharipov, who killed dozens in the nightclub attack, is suspected to have entered Turkey in January 2016.
At least 39 people, including a police officer, were killed when Masharipov opened fire on revelers at a nightclub in the Ortaköy district of Istanbul in the early hours of New Year's Day. Sixty-nine others were wounded, with a number of foreign nationals among the casualties.
