The prosecutor is demanding a prison sentence of more than 2 000 years for Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu in a corruption case.
Bloomberg writes about this.
In a 3 900-page indictment, law enforcement officials named Imamoglu as the founder and leader of a criminal organization and accused him of bribery, fraud, and bid rigging. In addition to him, the list includes 402 other suspects.
In total, the Istanbul mayor could face between 828 and 2 352 years in prison. The court will have 15 days to decide whether to accept or reject the indictment and set a trial date.
Ekrem Imamoglu is the strongest challenger to incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the next Turkish election. However, the charges could see Imamoglu removed from office.
In March 2025, the Turkish news channel Haber Global wrote that Ekrem Imamoglu called the case an attempt to prevent him from running for president.
The case of Ekrem Imamoglu
Imamoglu is one of the leaders of the opposition Republican Peopleʼs Party. He was considered the main rival of incumbent President Recep Tayyip Erdogan in the next presidential election in 2028.
However, on March 18, Imamogluʼs higher education diploma was canceled, allegedly due to technical violations. Having a diploma is a prerequisite for running in the presidential election.
Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu was detained on March 19 in a corruption case, along with dozens of his associates. On March 23, a court ruled to keep him in custody until the end of the trial.
In mid-July, Imamoglu was sentenced to 1 year and 8 months in prison on charges in a separate case of insulting a civil servant and making threats. The court also revoked his higher education diplomas.
Since the end of October, the Istanbul Prosecutorʼs Office has been conducting an investigation on suspicion of espionage against the ousted mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu.
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