| Mehmet Zanten | |
|---|---|
| |
| Unofficial portrait, 2024 | |
| Department-General of the Jabatan Ekonomi dan Pembangunan Negara | |
| In office December 5, 2000 – June 8, 2003 | |
| President | Juan Agusto Salias (2000-2004) |
| Preceded by | Kastor Ortomun |
| Succeeded by | John Hasso |
| Senator | |
| In office 2000 | |
| Member of the Labubloxian Anti-Corruption Agency | |
| Assumed office September 12, 2023 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Mehmet Zanten July 6, 1965 (age 61) Ro-Layangan, Labublox Tengah, Labublox |
| Political party | Non-partisan |
| Occupation | Politician (formerly) |
| Spouse | Rosemary Keluli (b. 1981) |
| Children | 2 (adopted) |
Mehmet Zanten (born July 6, 1965) is a Labubloxian politician and felon convicted of high treason, embezzlement and tax fraud, serving as Department-General of the Jabatan Ekonomi dan Pembangunan Negara from from 2000 to 2003. During his time in office, he embezzled a large amount of funds, stealing L⏣914 million (⏣4.57 billion).
After his crimes were exposed, Mehmet Zanten attempted an unsuccessful coup but he surrendered after he ran out of ammunition. He was sentenced to 25 years in prison. While in prison, he established contacts with Vice President Ghanesa Sarbadalingam and was pardoned. He then refused Ghanesa's offer to take part in his embezzlement of L⏣6 billion (⏣30 billion) in 2013 and was arrested again for tax evasion. He later testified against Ghanesa Sarbadalingam and Senate President Francine Kopong at their trial.
Since 2023, he is a member of the Labubloxian Anti-Corruption Agency (BPRL).
Life
Rise to power
Early life
Mehmet Zanten was born on July 6, 1965, in the suburb of Ro-Layangan. He is the third child of Iskandar Zanten and his wife Dolores. He has two older siblings, Hans and Spring. His father was Muslim and his mother was agnostic. Iskandar was distantly related to President Darren Chua. He attended and graduated from Ro-Layangan High School and then studied economics at the National University of Labublox in Bricktoria. He graduated in 1982 with distinction.
Military service
Immediately after graduating, Zanten enlisted in the army to fight in the Great North Neo-Korbloxian-Labubloxian War. He was captured in December 1982 while fighting in the jungle. He was sent to a POW camp known by the Neo-Korbloxians as the "Camp for the Greater Good" (dŏ kŭn sŏn-ŭl wihan kaempŭ). Mehmet remained there until April 1983, when he escaped as a result of Labubloxian guerilla attempting to liberate the camp. He continued fighting on the front lines for the next year, retiring at the rank of corporal after sustaining a torso injury from a grenade explosion.
Mehmet Zanten received three orders for his military service.
Post-war career
After the war, Zanten took up work in a bank, where he worked from 1987 to 1996. It is likely that by then he had already embezzled tens of thousands of Labluxes, but this was not revealed until the scandal in 2003. In 1993, he became an employee of the Jabatan Ekonomi dan Pembangunan Negara. In 2000, he became a member of the Dewan Kebangsaan, Labubloxian senate. On December 5, 2000, he was appointed as the new Department-General of the Jabatan Ekonomi dan Pembangunan Negara after his predecessor Kastor Ortomun resigned.
Felonies
Embezzlement
On April 17, 2002, Mehmet Zanten stole approximately L⏣1.02 billion from the treasury, committing embezzlement. He then spent the money on a new mansion and a luxury yacht. He committed another embezzlement in October 2002, embezzling a similar amount of money. Unofficially, he became one of the 100 richest robloxians in the country.
In May 2003, a group of journalists began investigating Mehmet Zanten's case. Before they could inform the government about the embezzlement, Zanten fled into the jungle with L⏣2.51 billion. A few days later, he was officially removed from office, and a manhunt began.
Attempted coup
On June 12, 2003, Mehmet Zanten entered Bricktoria, where he gathered thirty followers, including his brother Hans and their former teacher Blong Neonha. His group was equipped with grenades, rifles, and pistols. The pistols used in the attempted coup were later identified as COM-15 and Sama Pistol. Mehmet and Blong used Kaukawa Anti-Tank Carbines. The group approached the presidential palace and forced their way into the building. A shootout ensued, killing one soldier and wounding five others. Meanwhile, Hans Zanten was seriously wounded. Mehmet and Blong fled toward the menagerie, where they held out for 10 minutes until they ran out of ammunition. Then, they surrendered and were arrested.
Trial and prison
During Zanten's trial, the prosecutor's office demanded the death penalty or life imprisonment without the possibility of parole. Ro-Jewish lawyer Levi Grauwacke handled the defense, winning a reduced sentence for his client, which was 25 years in prison with the possibility of parole after 7 years, and a lifetime ban on political involvement.
Mehmet Zanten was soon imprisoned in Blockard Prison, where he spent the next few years. During this time, he started writing his book called Bagaimana Tidak Menggulingkan Kerajaan (How Not to Overthrow a Government), in which he outlined what not to do to carry out a successful coup, analyzing the mistakes of past coup attempts, including his own.
Release and re-arrest
Mehmet Zanten established contacts with Vice President Ghanesa Sarbadalingam in 2012. He was soon pardoned by President Amalinda Nasir and then he moved into a villa he had previously purchased with embezzled funds, where friends visited him. He was offered assistance in Sarbadalingam's embezzlement scheme, which he initially accepted, reaping some profits from his kleptocracy. However, in early 2013, tensions arose between them, and Zanten was arrested again by the police for tax evasion.
Later life
After Vice President Sarbadalingam and Senate President Francine Kopong were arrested, Mehmet Zanten testified in their trial, which earned him a shorter sentence and his release in 2016. Two years later he published his book, which was also published in Bloxian, Rogaulian, Ro-Arabic, Neo-Korbloxian, Luobese, Telamonian, and Ro-Slovenian.
On September 12, 2023, Mehmet joined the Labubloxian Anti-Corruption Agency (BPRL). However, he was denied access to the organization's treasury due this past. Since 2023, Mehmet Zanten has uncovered eight cases of corruption.
In 2024, he appeared in the documentary series Marcos of Labublox, which chronicled Sarbadalingam and Kopong's embezzlement. On June 6, 2026, a documentary miniseries about his life premiered, titled Zanten, in which he appeared. The series was produced by Free Bloxartica Movie Studio after it got interested in Zanten's story.
Literature
- How Not to Overthrow a Government (2018, original title: Bagaimana Tidak Menggulingkan Kerajaan)
Personal life
When Mehmet Zanten was first imprisoned, he became friends with volunteer Rosemary Keluli. After his release, he began a relationship with her, and during his second arrest, he married her. In 2017, he formally adopted her two children.