Former Halk Bank executive vice president Mehmet Hakan Atilla, found guilty in a violation of Iran sanctions case in the US and released from prison on Friday morning, arrived at Istanbul Airport. Atilla was welcomed by his mother Ayse Atilla.
A former Turkish banking executive, who was released from a federal US prison last week, arrived in Istanbul on Wednesday.
A Turkish Airlines plane carrying Mehmet Hakan Atilla landed at Istanbul Airport at around 0830 GMT (11:30 am local time) after it took off from the New York JFK International Airport.
Atilla, 48, the former deputy director general at Turkish state lender Halkbank, was sentenced in May 2018 in New York for violating US sanctions on Iran.
However, the judge allowed the time he had served after being arrested a year earlier to be credited in the sentence, and his release on July 19 was announced earlier due to good behaviour.
Former Halkbank executive vice president Mehmet Hakan Atilla (L), found guilty in the US-Iranian sanctions case and released from US prison on Friday for good behaviour, welcomed by Turkey's Treasury and Finance Minister Berat Albayrak (R) at Istanbul Airport.
On Sunday, Atilla was moved to York County Prison in Pennsylvania for deportation.
An official Anadolu Agency contacted from the prison confirmed that Atilla was handed over to US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officials.
When Atilla was convicted, Turkey blasted the verdict as a scandalous decision in a scandalous case and a conspiracy aimed at complicating Turkey's internal politics and intervening in Turkey's internal affairs.
Atilla's arrest came after Turkish-Iranian businessman Reza Zarrab was arrested in 2016 in the US for violating sanctions on Iran.
Cooperating with prosecutors, he gave testimony against Atilla which was used to convict the banker.
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