Analysis
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The presiding judge insisted on concluding the first hearing of the Istanbul corruption trial on July 9, thereby restricting the right to defense in the Istanbul corruption trial for the first time in the four months since it began.
Nine defendants were released at the 53rd hearing of the Istanbul Municipality’s corruption trial, bringing the total number of releases in the case to 51.
Allegations of ill-treatment, strip searches and prosecutorial threats dominated this week's hearings at the Istanbul Municipality corruption trial, as defendants described abusive detention conditions and coerced statements.
The Istanbul corruption trial completed its 12th week as plaintiffs continued to withdraw their previous statements and jailed Istanbul mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu celebrated his 55th birthday at the courtroom.
Fifteen more pre-trial defendants were released in the corruption case targeting the Istanbul Municipality, including Adem Soytekin, a businessperson who applied for leniency under Turkey's remorse law, as the war of words between President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and main opposition CHP Chair Özgür Özel showed no signs of abating over the case.
The Istanbul Municipality corruption trial reached its 19th hearing session this week, bringing some of the most dramatic courtroom scenes since proceedings began. Ekrem İmamoğlu, the CHP's presidential candidate and Istanbul's jailed mayor, set the tone for the week. Describing the indictment as "not just garbage but rotten garbage rotting inside garbage," he told the court the case had already collapsed at its foundations: "If the alleged leader of the organization does not even know the alleged members, the whole thing collapses from the start."
"This political case will collapse," Istanbul Mayor and the CHP's presidential candidate Ekrem İmamoğlu declared repeatedly while delivering the last remarks on the 15th session of the corruption hearing. The courtroom was again full like the first days of the hearing as many were expecting a court ruling on release of several defendants. Only 18 of those under pre-trial detention were released, according to the midnight interim ruling. As expected, İmamoğlu’s executive assistant Kadriye Kasapoğlu and low profile figures like the drivers or workers were released but former CHP MP Aykut Erdoğdu was not on the list.
On March 26, the 11th hearing in the trial of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu and his co-defendants on corruption charges was concluded, with proceedings shifting away from procedural debates toward the substance of testimonies. Discussions centered on statements by defendants and individuals who later withdrew their testimonies after invoking the remorse provisions, reviving debate over the strength of the indictment.
The trial of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu on corruption charges began on March 9, with the main defendant’s plans to challenge the legitimacy of the trial muzzled by the court and the media. After waiting nearly a year, İmamoğlu and 402 co-defendants — 107 of whom are under pre-trial detention — finally got their day in court. The hearings began with a confrontation between the court and İmamoğlu over his desire to make his case. He was allowed to deliver only a short statement on the second day and may have to wait at least until mid-April — in the best-case scenario — to present his full defense.
CHP Chair Özgür Özel spent the Bayram holiday and the following days pressing his attack against new Justice Minister Akın Gürlek, accusing him of illicit enrichment and corruption.
Hearings have begun in a corruption probe involving municipalities run by the main opposition CHP, following investigations launched in March 2025. The case marks the first major trial stemming from the allegations, ahead of a separate prosecution involving Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu that is set to begin on March 9. The CHP’s legal strategy and the court’s approach to the defendants are expected to shape Turkey’s political agenda over the many years the trials are expected to take.
The indictment against President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s chief rival, Ekrem İmamoğlu, not only accuses the jailed Istanbul mayor of corruption, but also targets the CHP, laying bare the political nature of the case. The charge sheet alleges that the CHP is being taken over by a criminal organization and on that basis prosecutors also notified the Court of Cassation that there may be grounds to close the main opposition party.