A former Istanbul police intelligence chief who was recently in row with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdoğan was among the 69 officers detained as part of a criminal probe into allegations of “espionage” and “illegal wiretapping,” as the total number of officers in custody rose to 102 on Wednesday, July 23, Hurriyet Daily News reported.

Ali Fuat Yılmazer recently drew public attention after claiming that it was Erdoğan who demanded the arrest of former army chief İlker Başbuğ, sparking the latter’s anger. “These are lies from A to Z,” Erdoğan had said in response to Yılmazer during a televised interview following Başbuğ’s release, before adding: “He will pay the price for this.”

Yılmazer’s name first became publically known after he was accused of negligence after the assassination of the Turkish-Armenian journalist Hrant Dink, while he was in charge of intelligence at the Istanbul police department. He was subsequently promoted, despite being implicated in a report prepared by the Prime Ministry Inspection Board on Dink’s murder.

As he was brought to the police station, Yılmazer turned to the cameras and photographers and raised his handcuffed arms to protest the operation.

“Turkey will see; these are medals of honor,” he said, claiming the operation was staged in retaliation for the arrest of businessmen close to the government during the Dec 17, 2013 probe on corruption claims.

Yılmazer then accused the officers detaining him of “making a show.”