İstanbul mayor faces 7 years in prison, ban from politics in terrorism-related case

İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu has been formally indicted over his recent remarks on the province’s chief public prosecutor.

The İstanbul 14th Heavy Penal court accepted the indictment today, scheduling the first hearing for Apr 14. The mayor faces a prison sentence from 2 years and 8 months to 7 years and 4 months and a ban from politics for “insulting a public official due to their duty,” “threat” and “marking a counterterrorism official as a targe for terro groups.”

The case stems from comments İmamoğlu made during a speech last month, where he said, addressing Akın Gürlek, the chief prosecutor, that “we’ll erase the mentality that guides you from this country.”

Gürlek, who previously acted as the deputy justice minister and the presiding judge in several politically charged cases, has been strongly criticized by the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) for allegedly acting in line with the government’s political agenda. CHP politicians, including İmamoğlu, have also held Gürlek responsible for a series of recent investigations targeting İstanbul district municipalities run by the party.

The indictment, which cites Gürlek as the victim, İmamoğlu’s statements were an attempt to “pressure the judiciary” and “influence court decisions” by using his political status.

The prosecutors also argued that Gürlek was known to be a target for “terrorist orgnizations” due to his previous duties, and İmamoğlu marked him as a target for such groups in his speech, in addition to threatening the chief prosecutor. İmamoğlu’s remarks “included elements that could put Gürlek and his family at risk,” according to the indictment.

Legal challenges against CHP and İmamoğlu

İmamoğlu and other CHP local governors have faced several investigations and cases in recent months, ranging from terrorism-related offenses to alleged irregularities in public tenders.

Mayors of the Esenyurt and Beşiktaş districts were remanded in custody in October and January, respectively, and replaced by government-appointed trustees.

During raids targeting 9 İstanbul district municipalities yesterday, several municipal councilors and two deputy district mayors were detained as part of a “terrorism” investigation.

İmamoğlu himself faces another investigation for “attempting to influence the judiciary” for his revelation that the same expert witness was involved in multiple investigations targeting CHP-run municipalities, including Beşiktaş and Esenyurt.

Since defeating the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) in İstanbul’s 2019 municipal elections, ending the AKP and its predecessors’ 25-year control of the city, İmamoğlu has emerged as a prominent opposition figure and a potential rival to Erdoğan in future presidential elections.

In Dec 2022, a court sentenced İmamoğlu to two years in prison and a five-year political ban over allegedly insulting members of the Supreme Election Council in a 2019 speech. The opposition claimed his remarks were taken out of context. The verdict is currently under appeal. (VK)