Donald Trump Buddy Arrested in Hooker Yacht Helicopter Raid [Update]
UPDATE: Tevfik Arif's lawyer has informed us that:
"(1) Tevfik Arif was acquitted of all charges in April 2011 and (2) that there were in fact no underage girls on the Savarona."
Tevfik Arif, New York real estate developer and Donald Trump pal, was arrested this week aboard the famed Turkish yacht Savarona during a police helicopter raid for allegedly running expensive pleasure cruises for rich guys and underage prostitutes.
Arif is a Kazakh businessman and chairman of Bayrock Group LLC, a property group that partnered with the Trump Organization to build the SoHo Hotel Condominium and a Trump Tower in Florida. He was arrested by Turkish police who swooped down on the Savarona in helicopters in a raid that also nabbed ten Russian and Ukrainian prostitutes, some of them under 18 years old, as well as "Russian, Kyrgyz and Kazakh businessmen and high-level government officials," according to Bloomberg. And just what did police find during the raid? People naked at lunchtime and rubbers everywhere!
The Turkish military policeman who led the helicopter raid on the Savarona told Milliyet that the team found all the yacht's guests in bed when they landed around lunchtime. The official, who declined to be identified according to the [Milliyet] newspaper, said they found dozens of condoms in each room, and didn't initially find any drugs, illegal weapons or video equipment that could be used for blackmail.
The investigation into Arif's love boat lasted seven months. Turkish authorities claim Arif charged his clients "$3,000 to $10,000 per night to sleep with Russian and Ukrainian women obtained through modeling agencies." Arif's lawyer unsurprisingly says this is a "smear campaign" and accused Turkish authorities of illegally tapping Arif's phone. So, underage human trafficking charges aside, what else can you get aboard Arif's pleasure boat?
Your cruise fare covers all shipboard services including suite accommodation, all on-board meals and entertainment, complimentary beverages aboard ship during all meals (including select wines and sprits), government fees and taxes, airport-port-airport transfers and luggage handling, all shore excursions (including all entrance fees of museums and historic sites and on-shore meals), massage, hair styling and manicures, laundry services.
Sounds like a dream vacation. Book yours now!
[Suite image via savaronavoyage.com]