Turkish police detained 57 people on Monday in a new operation targeting an İstanbul Metropolitan Municipality subsidiary, the latest in a series of investigations into municipalities run by the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), Turkish Minute reported, citing the state-run Anadolu news agency.
The İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office said detention warrants had been issued for 58 people as part of an investigation into Boğaziçi Tesis Yönetim Hizmetleri A.Ş., a company affiliated with the İstanbul Municipality.
Police carried out simultaneous raids in İstanbul and the provinces of Adana, Bursa, Diyarbakır, Konya and Yalova, taking 57 suspects into custody while efforts continued to detain one remaining suspect.
The suspects are accused of involvement in irregularities in tenders held by the municipal company, including “bid rigging,” as part of organized activity.
The new operation came as 12 people detained Friday in a separate investigation targeting the municipality were referred to court after questioning by the police.
The investigations are part of a growing legal campaign against CHP-run municipalities that has intensified since the March 2025 arrest of İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s main political rival.
İmamoğlu, who denies any wrongdoing, is the chief suspect in a sweeping corruption case involving the İstanbul Municipality and hundreds of defendants.
The CHP says the cases targeting its mayors and municipal officials are politically motivated and designed to weaken the opposition after its gains in the 2024 local elections, while the government denies interfering in the judiciary.
Separate operation targets CHP-run Tepebaşı Municipality
In a separate operation based in the central province of Eskişehir, police detained 23 people out of 60 suspects wanted in an investigation into the Tepebaşı Municipality, which is also run by the CHP, Anadolu reported. Thirty-three of the suspects are municipal employees.
The Eskişehir Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office said the investigation was launched over allegations including embezzlement, forgery, violations of tax law, laundering of criminal proceeds and abuse of office.
Prosecutors alleged that irregularities occurred in some municipal tenders, particularly purchases made by the Culture, Arts and Social Affairs Directorate through direct procurement from rental and event organization companies.
They said suspects allegedly used fake bids, misleading documents and invoices for services that were not provided or were overbilled, causing public losses.
The detainees reportedly include a deputy mayor and the private secretary of Tepebaşı Mayor Ahmet Ataç.
Anadolu reported that the operation was carried out in Eskişehir, Ankara and Adana.
Former CHP mayor sentenced to more than 46 years in prison
The latest operations came as a Turkish court sentenced Niyazi Nefi Kara, the former mayor of Manavgat in the southern province of Antalya, to more than 46 years in prison on charges including corruption, money laundering and leading a criminal organization, Anadolu reported on Friday.
More than 40 defendants stood trial in the case. A former deputy mayor of Manavgat was also sentenced to 40 years in prison and given a judicial fine.
Kara, who previously served two terms as a CHP lawmaker for Antalya, was elected mayor of Manavgat in the March 31, 2024 local elections with 44.94 percent of the vote.
Kara was arrested in July 2025 and was subsequently removed from office.
