site.btaTwenty-one Detained within Corruption Investigation into Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality

Twenty-nine people have been detained as part of the corruption investigation into Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality, the Anadolu Agency reported Friday. The arrests are linked to the Tree and Landscape municipal landscaping company, which investigators allege manipulated tenders through a fictitious bidding system. 

The news comes amid a campaign by Turkish authorities against corruption at the local level. The investigations primarily target municipalities governed by the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP); since 2024, dozens of municipal employees and a total of 22 CHP mayors have been detained in the course of these actions, including the ousted mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu, who is currently in prison. A massive trial has been underway since March 9 against Imamoglu and 407 other defendants. 

According to a statement from the Istanbul Chief Prosecutor’s Office, those arrested are part of an organized crime group led by Imamoglu. The statement notes that 29 of the 30 individuals for whom arrest warrants were issued have been detained. The one suspect who remains at large is currently abroad, and efforts to apprehend him are ongoing. 

According to the indictment filed by the Turkish prosecutor’s office, an organized group led by Imamoglu began operating during his tenure as mayor of the Istanbul municipality of Beylikduzu and expanded during his tenure as mayor of Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality. Imamoglu is charged with 142 different offences, including: “forming an organization with the intent to commit crimes,” “concealing evidence of a crime,” “obstructing communication,” “damaging public property,” “bribery,” “public dissemination of misleading information,” “extortion,” “fraud against public institutions,” “laundering of assets derived from criminal activity,” “manipulation of tenders,” and others. Prosecutors are seeking a sentence of up to 2,352 years in prison.