Emina Jahovic: 'It Was All Just a Scam'
The singer spoke publicly for the first time about losing designer clothes, bags, shoes and jewelry worth more than 50,000 euros in Istanbul. The money was meant to go to charity.
Singer Emina Jahovic confirmed on August 6 that she was scammed in Istanbul and lost designer clothes, bags, shoes and jewelry worth more than 50,000 euros in total. She spoke about the case publicly for the first time, in a statement to the media.
She had been collecting the pieces for years. Most of them she had worn once or never at all, and over time they piled up across her apartments and houses. The plan was simple: sell everything and put the proceeds toward charity.
Her stylist in Istanbul introduced her to a woman who deals in reselling secondhand luxury items. The woman is originally from Montenegro and ran an Instagram profile through which she sourced and sold such pieces. Emina Jahovic handed everything over, already prepared, in Istanbul, where she lives.
Once the items changed hands, contact stopped. The woman blocked the singer on every platform and disappeared. The pieces were never sold, and they were never returned.
Why No One Suspected Anything
The recommendation did not come from a stranger, it came from within her closest working circle. Her stylist was the one who brought the woman in, so the usual vetting never happened before the deal even started. An Instagram profile, an explanation of how she worked and an introduction through someone trusted were enough.
My stylist from Istanbul is the one who brought this girl in. We all thought she was fine and that she would handle everything the right way. She had an Instagram profile, she sourced and sold those kinds of things. We thought we would eventually give all of it to charity, but it was all just a scam. It was hard for me at the time, not because the things were gone, since they were meant to go anyway, but because I thought I was going to do something good. I get very nostalgic, I live abroad and, when I see people from our country, I think there are no better people and that they would never do anything bad
The statement was given in the first person, without hedging and without naming the woman who took the items.
What Hurt Her the Most
Not the money. The singer stressed that the failed charity plan hurt her more than the material loss itself, and it is the only part of the story she lingered on in her statement.
That detail changes the tone of the whole story. This is not a story about a singer who lost expensive handbags, it is about money that was meant for someone else and never got there.
Timeline of Events
- for years she bought and collected designer pieces, most of which she wore once or never
- she decided to sell the items and put the proceeds toward charity
- her stylist in Istanbul introduced her to a woman who resells secondhand luxury goods
- the handover of the clothes, bags, shoes and jewelry took place in Istanbul
- after taking the items, the woman cut off contact and blocked her on social media
- the items have not been sold or returned to this day
What Remains After All This
One practical problem is easy to miss in the statement. The handover took place in Turkey, the woman is originally from Montenegro, and the singer splits her life between two addresses. Any attempt to trace the items would have to cross multiple borders, and she did not mention in her statement that she had reported the case anywhere.
Emina Jahovic has in any case spent most of her career and personal life in Turkey. She was married to Turkish singer Mustafa Sandal, and after the divorce, according to sources close to the singer, her priorities shifted. Instead of clothes, her money today goes into music and real estate. That very shift is what led to the idea of selling off the old collection.
Selling secondhand luxury items through social media runs on trust and referrals. There is no platform standing in between, no deposit, no guarantee. When contact breaks off, as it did in this case, there is nothing left to bring the items back quickly.
The singer has not said whether she plans to pursue the case further. The line she closed her statement with, about believing in people from her own country, will probably end up costing her less than these 50,000 euros.
