Reza Zarrab
| Reza Zarrab | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Reza Zarrab 12 September 1983 Tabriz, Iran |
| Residence | Istanbul, Turkey |
| Citizenship |
Turkey Azerbaijan Iran |
| Years active | 2004–present |
| Spouse(s) | Ebru Gündeş (m. 2010) |
| Children | Alara Sarraf |
Reza Zarrab (Persian: رضا ضراب, Turkish: Rıza Sarraf; born 12 September 1983 in Tabriz, Iran) is a Turkey-based businessman. He has triple Iranian, Azerbaijani and Turkish citizenship, while also holding a Macedonian passport.
On 19 March 2016 he was arrested in the United States and charged with money laundering among other allegations, in an alleged racket scheme to help Iran bypass US sanctions against the country, involving ministers of the Turkish government of then prime minister and now president of Turkey, Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
Zarrab was born in Tabriz to Iranian Azerbaijani parents and grew up in Azerbaijan and Turkey. Reza Zarrab became a dual citizen of Turkey and Republic of Azerbaijan after settling in Istanbul. Zarrab's parents remained in Baku through 2010-11; in 2013 they were granted Turkish citizenship reportedly through facilitation of then Interior Minister Muammer Güler.
Zarrab, who has business affiliation with the Iranian tycoon Babak Zanjani, was detained in Istanbul on 17 December 2013 due to his involvement with the sons of three ministers (Erdoğan Bayraktar, Muammer Güler and Zafer Çağlayan) in the Turkish government and Egemen Bağış, the former minister for EU Affairs and Turkey's chief negotiator in accession talks with the European Union, in an alleged bribery, corruption and smuggling racket. The court ordered his arrest on 21 December along with Barış Güler, son of Muammer Güler, and Kaan Çağlayan, son of Zafer Çağlayan. He was released on 28 February 2014.
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Wikipedia