GENDARMERIE forces have raided a cologne producer in Fethiye, seizing 3,900 litres of bootleg alcohol and the material used to produce counterfeit alcoholic drinks.

Security sources said 1,400 litres of the alcohol was bottled and ready for distribution. Two people were detained for their roles in the production.

The raid came as the result of a tip followed by Muğla and Fethiye gendarmerie intelligence regarding the production of bootleg alcohol to be distributed in the bars and hotels in and around Fethiye. 

A depot rented as a workshop to produce cologne was raided and the gendarmerie seized 3,900 liters of counterfeit vodka, rakı and whiskey prepared in plastic garbage bin using various chemicals.

The bottles ready for distribution also had fake stamps, the security forces said.

The gendarmerie forces also confiscated hundreds of empty bottles, fake stamps and labels, and methyl alcohol and other chemicals used in the production. The material will be destroyed.

The local head of the neighborhood where the workshop was located, Mustafa Gizli, thanked the security forces for the operation.

“There was enough amount of bootleg alcohol here to destroy Fethiye, luckily, the gendarmerie performed the operation before they could poison our people and the tourists,” he added.