Four suspects searching for treasure inside a building in Samsun's Canik district were detained.

Teams from the Provincial Police Department's Anti-Smuggling and Organized Crime Branch and the Canik District Police Department acted upon a tip-off about unauthorized excavation.

During the operation carried out at the determined address in Canik, a search was conducted in an old two-story building. Teams found a lid camouflaged with a rug on the ground floor.

In the section beneath the lid, a pit approximately 2.5 meters deep and 1.5 meters wide, dug for treasure hunting purposes, was discovered.

Legal proceedings were initiated against the 4 detained suspects on charges of "Violation of the Law on the Protection of Cultural and Natural Assets."

During the operation, various tools used in the excavation were also seized.