He described in court, one by one, the plunder and coercion racket at İBB: This is not trade, it is extortion.

13.10.2026 02:10

At the trial of the 'Ekrem İmamoğlu Profit-Oriented Criminal Organization,' businessman Muhittin Palazoğlu, who was making his defense, said at the hearing that advertiser Deniz Dörtyol told him that pressure had been exerted on him to buy products from a company belonging to Murat Ongun's wife. Palazoğlu said, "The company in question is Byzag, which is said to belong to Mr. Murat's wife. This is not trade; it is pressure, it is extortion. A payment forced through pressure by using the influence provided by public office is not bribery but extortion by a public official. The one who pays is not the perpetrator but the victim."

On the 32nd day of the second hearing of the 'Ekrem İmamoğlu Profit-Oriented Criminal Organization' case, the taking of defendants' defenses continued. At the hearing, advertising businessman and non-detained defendant Muhittin Palazoğlu made his defense.

"ADSTATION HAS NOT RECEIVED ANY TENDER FROM IBB OR ITS SUBSIDIARIES SINCE 2019" 

Palazoğlu said that he founded Adstation, a company operating in event organization and outdoor advertising, in 2011 together with his brother Mehmet Esat Palazoğlu, and stated: "At the beginning of 2024, due to disagreements within the family, we decided to completely separate the companies and the businesses we were running. Since I was one of the founders of Adstation and saw the company almost like my child, I wanted to take it over. However, my brother and I could not agree on the transfer of the company for a long time. Therefore, I could not join the company management until March 5, 2025, and I had no authority of representation or signature. During this period, we needed someone to handle the communication and coordination of the work. An offer was made to Deniz Dörtyol, who had previously worked with us and later founded his own advertising company and worked with companies for the marketing processes of advertising spaces. I did not object to Deniz carrying out these works. Adstation has not received any tender from IBB or its subsidiaries after 2019," he said.

"THIS IS NOT COMMERCE, IT IS PRESSURE, IT IS EXTORTION" 

Palazoğlu, in the continuation of his defense, saying that one day Deniz Dörtyol, an advertising professional, came to him: "Deniz told me that Emlak Bağdatlı (fugitive defendant) was putting pressure on him to buy prayer beads. I asked what need there was for such a thing. Then he showed me Emrah Bağdatlı's message. The message said, 'the boss's wife's company, think carefully.' He told me, 'They are putting a lot of pressure; they say that if I do not get into this business, I will not be able to do business in the advertising sector.' I said, 'If your advertising spaces will be damaged, then if necessary, talk to Ahmet Palazoğlu and decide.' The payment made to Byzag (the company belonging to Murat Ongun's wife Zeynep Ayten Gözdem Ongun) within this scope is not a payment made by me personally, but a company transaction carried out by Adstation. On the date the payment was made, I was not a partner, manager, or authorized signatory of Adstation. Between December 27, 2019 and March 5, 2025, I had no share, managerial position, representation, or signature authority at Adstation. Let there be no misunderstanding. I am not making an accusatory statement about my brother Ahmet Palazoğlu either. The company to which the payment was made is Byzag, stated to belong to Mr. Murat's wife. This is not called commerce; it is pressure, extortion. Moreover, a payment forced through pressure by using the influence provided by public office is not bribery but extortion by a public official. The payer is not the perpetrator but the victim," he stated.

"IF MURAT ONGUN THINKS I AM LYING, HE SHOULD ANSWER THE QUESTIONS IN THE FILE INSTEAD OF INSULTING ME"

Criticizing Murat Ongun's statements in his defense, Palazoğlu said: "Throughout the hearing, Murat Ongun called me a hypocrite, a slander-monger, a fake and leech-like man. Throughout the hearing, he specifically targeted me. Whenever the matter of the Byzag company was asked about, he tried to insert my name into that account. Instead of answering the matters he should explain regarding Byzag, he tries to overshadow the main allegations and draw public attention in another direction by targeting me. However, insulting me or constantly repeating my name does not eliminate the questions awaiting answers about Byzag. If Murat Ongun really thinks I am lying, he should answer the questions in the file instead of insulting me. Mr. Ongun, who said 'this is not related to this file' when asked about his own house rent, when the subject comes to me, recounts my family, my past, and whom I know or do not know at length, and practically turns me into tabloid material," he said.

"I SAID THEY WILL NOT LET US SURVIVE HERE, AND I WITHDREW FROM THE ADVERTISING SECTOR"

After the defendant's defense, the public prosecutor asked: "In your statement, you mentioned a system regarding the period after the election. You have a statement as follows: 'A new system was established and announced to the entire sector. If advertising was to be placed in Istanbul, we were informed that we had to comply with this system.' What is this system?" The defendant answered the question: "The IBB election had been won as of June 23, 2019. The administration had changed. After this election, all our advertising spaces were taken down overnight. At that time, I was also an authorized officer and manager of Adstation. Afterwards, at first a friend from the advertising sector came to us and then took me to Serdal Taşkın. Serdal Taşkın also took me to Murat Ongun. Serdal Taşkın and Murat Ongun announced the new system. After that, I already said they will not let us survive here. Six months later, I withdrew from Adstation and the advertising sector," he replied.