New Allegations in KSTU Investigation: Multiple Commissions Paid for the Same Student

Serdal Gündüz, the secretary general and shareholder of Cyprus Health and Social Sciences University (KSTU), and Amir Shakerifard, the university’s international office manager, appeared before the Omorfo District Court today as part of their preliminary hearing. The judge, Gülay Süleymanoğlu Uğur, ordered that the hearing be adjourned to September 19 to continue listening to witnesses.

Testimony of O.Ö.: Multiple Commissions Paid for the Same Student

O.Ö., the prosecution's first witness, was part of the audit team sent by KSTU’s founder, Ece Uysal, to conduct a financial audit. O.Ö. testified that the team found irregularities during their inspection of the university’s accounting system, both in physical records and in their computerized system.

The audit team discovered invoices without corresponding contracts and noted that some invoices lacked the list of students for whom commissions were being paid. Further investigations revealed that some students appeared on multiple invoices, leading to multiple commissions being paid for the same individual. O.Ö. communicated these findings to M.A., who was acting as the interim director of KSTU, and lodged a complaint regarding the matter.

Testimony of M.A.: Lack of Contracts Raises Suspicions

M.A., the second witness and secretary and interim director of Helpco Education Co. Ltd, testified that they traveled to Cyprus with a team from Turkey to investigate suspicious transactions, following reports from the university’s administrative staff. The reports centered around potential irregularities in student income and supplier invoices.

M.A. explained that they found no contracts for commissions paid to agencies that brought students to the university. The team requested an invoice sample from the accounting department and were provided one totaling €48,810, which lacked a detailed list of students. When asked for a contract with the agency, they were informed that no such contract existed.

M.A. further stated that discrepancies were found in the commission payments, with repeated payments for the same students. Interviews with some of the students revealed that they had registered directly with the university and had no connection to any agency. M.A. reported these findings to the financial police, who are continuing the investigation by interviewing more students.

130 Charges Filed Against the Defendants

Both Serdal Gündüz and Amir Shakerifard face a total of 130 charges, including "Obtaining Money Through Fraud," "Forgery," "Circulating Forged Documents," "Accounting Fraud," "Money Laundering," and "Embezzlement."

Ongoing Trial in the Heavy Penal Court

Separately, Serdal Gündüz is also facing trial at the Nicosia Heavy Penal Court related to another case involving his assistant, Berk Özbek. The trial continues.