02.05.2026 21:01
In the corruption investigation targeting Uşak Municipality, Murat Altınkaya, the driver of Özkan Yalım—who became a confessor benefiting from effective remorse—claimed that valuable hand-woven carpets from the municipality-affiliated 'Dokur House' were taken to the home of Yalım and his girlfriend. Altınkaya alleged that he refused to sign the official documents regarding the receipt of the carpets due to irregularities, and that Yalım personally signed the documents instead.
Murat Altınkaya, the driver of CHP Mayor Özkan Yalım, who was arrested and suspended from duty in the corruption investigation conducted by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office regarding the Uşak Municipality, has become an informant.
ALLEGATION: "HE PUT THE MUNICIPALITY'S CARPETS IN HIS GIRLFRIEND'S HOUSE"
According to journalist Burak Doğan, one of the most striking points in Altınkaya's statement, made with the intention of benefiting from the provisions of effective remorse, was the allegation of private use of municipal resources.
In the accounts included in the file, it was alleged that handmade carpets taken from "Dokur Evi," a production center affiliated with the municipality, were taken to an apartment co-owned with E.Y., who is claimed to be Özkan Yalım's girlfriend.
Altınkaya detailed the process of removing the carpets from the public institution and transporting them to a private residence with these words: "The carpets were taken from the municipality's 'Dokur Evi' for the house they co-own with a person named E.Y., who is Özkan Yalım's girlfriend. In 2025, together with İ., an employee of Özkan Yalım, we went to the municipality's Dokur Evi on Özkan Yalım's orders and received five or six carpets. We took these carpets together with İ. to be used in the house."
"I DID NOT SIGN IT, ÖZKAN YALIM HIMSELF SIGNED IT"
Altınkaya explained the irregularity during the carpet delivery and the oddity in the document process with the following statements: "The installation of the carpets in the house was done by a person named K., who works in the private office. When we received the carpets, since they forgot to write the square meters, we later measured them and reported the carpet sizes to Dokur Evi. As per normal procedure, they prepared a document showing the carpet dimensions and that we received them, but since the carpets were taken to Özkan Yalım's girlfriend, I did not sign this document; Özkan Yalım himself signed it."
INVESTIGATION
The Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, through the Organized Crimes Investigation Bureau, had launched an investigation into allegations regarding rigging tenders organized by the Uşak Municipality, demanding bribes from tradespeople for certain irregular transactions, and collecting large sums of money under the guise of aid/donations to Uşakspor, on charges of "bribery," "extortion," and "tampering with tenders."
Within the scope of the investigation, on April 20, simultaneous operations were carried out in Uşak, İzmir, and Istanbul by teams from the Istanbul Police Department's Financial Crimes Branch to apprehend suspects who had been given detention orders.
As part of the investigation, Uşak Mayor Özkan Yalım, Deputy Mayor Halil Arslan, municipality's Accounting and Finance Director Hüseyin Yaman, Private Office Director Hasan Doğukan Kurnaz, chauffeur Murat Altınkaya, municipal personnel Cihan Aras and İsmail Özçelik, Uşak Haber Media Company Owner Murat Baş and Mustafa Yalım, CHP Uşak Provincial Chairman Celalettin Çoban and Uşakspor President Özhan Özgöbek, Ahmet Arslan, Ahmet Yıldız, Ali Arı, Fahreddin Altundal, Ferhat Cucu, Mehmet Arslan, Mustafa Arslan, Rahmi Altundal, Sefa Taşcı, Akın Cantürk, Cemal Ak, Ceren Yeşildağ, Ulaş Küçükakın, and Ümut Demi were arrested.
It was decided to impose judicial control measures on 17 suspects.