The Mayor of Beyoğlu, İnan Güney, has been suspended from duty.

19.08.2025 14:32

The CHP's Beyoğlu Mayor İnan Güney, who was arrested and sent to prison as part of a corruption investigation against the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (İBB), has been suspended from duty by the Ministry of Interior.

The Beyoğlu Mayor İnan Güney, among 17 suspects detained as part of the corruption investigation against the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IMM), was arrested last night.

NEW DECISION AFTER ARREST

The new decision regarding Güney, who was sent to prison after his arrest, came from the Ministry of Interior. In the ministry's statement, it was expressed that Beyoğlu Mayor İnan Güney was suspended from duty.

İNAN GÜNEY SUSPENDED FROM DUTY

The statement from the Ministry of Interior is as follows: "Beyoğlu Mayor İnan Güney was suspended from duty by the Ministry of Interior as a temporary measure in accordance with Article 127 of the Constitution and Article 47 of the Municipal Law No. 5393, following his arrest by the Istanbul 3rd Criminal Court of Peace with the decision dated 19.08.2025 and inquiry number 2025/1073 due to the crimes of 'Membership in an Organization Established for the Purpose of Committing Crimes and Fraud to the Detriment of Public Institutions and Organizations.'

CHP MAYOR'S STATEMENT REVEALED

After being detained as part of the investigation, the statement taken from Beyoğlu Mayor İnan Güney by the prosecutor's office was obtained. In his statement, Güney claimed that all the statements made by some suspects whose testimonies were asked of him were entirely slanderous and that these individuals were directed by suspect Alican Abacı, who is alleged to be the leader of the criminal organization led by Aziz İhsan Aktaş, to testify against him.

Güney noted that Abacı's statement, "Although İnan Güney is the Mayor of Beyoğlu, he was managing BELTAŞ, a subsidiary of Beşiktaş Municipality," was included in the statements of both Abacı and suspects Mustafa Mutlu and Murat Kapki, and he stated in his testimony: "It is evident that these individuals are slandering me in the same direction and with the same language. I had no authority in the preparation of the tender for the mentioned project. I left my position at BELTAŞ in November 2023. Therefore, I had no authority in the tender conducted by Beşiktaş Municipality in 2024. As mentioned by this individual, I did not attend any meetings related to the tender. At the end of 2024, I only visited (suspect Rıza Akpolat in the investigation against the Aziz İhsan Aktaş criminal organization) for a courtesy visit, and later Abacı and Mutlu came to his room. I witnessed their discussions related to the tender. Abacı and Mutlu proposed that this advertising tender be awarded and that in return, the debts of Beşiktaş Municipality be settled. Akpolat, however, did not accept this offer, stating that the tender would be awarded to whoever made the highest bid. The only environment I was in regarding the mentioned tender was this incident. The claim that I discussed the tender specifications with an individual I had dismissed from the municipality is contrary to the ordinary course of life."

In his interrogation, Güney asserted that he had no official or unofficial interest relationship with Aziz İhsan Aktaş. Regarding Murat Kapki's statements, Güney stated: "The immoral and slanderous Kapki was introduced to me by Abacı, and he made suggestions to me about giving him work. Since I did not accept this offer, the individual named Kapki has made slanderous and false statements about me. I do not have any official or unofficial company related to outdoor advertising media. During my tenure as the Mayor of Beyoğlu, no leasing was made regarding the advertising media under our protection. These media are used for public service. If I had any interest or trade related to outdoor advertising media, it would be expected that I would have had some activity in this regard during my one and a half years of being mayor."

When asked about Mustafa Mutlu's (suspect in the investigation against the Aziz İhsan Aktaş criminal organization) statement, Güney said that Mutlu's allegations were slanderous. He stated that the claims that he demanded a 20% commission from people he had never known in his life at the Albayraklar Group were irrational and illogical, and he expressed that he wanted Kazım Albayrak to be heard as a witness. He explained that the vehicle tender mentioned in the statement was conducted openly, transparently, and in accordance with the procedure, and was awarded to the company that made the best offer. Regarding the statements of Serkan Öztürk, who is a suspect in the investigation against IMM, Güney argued that the allegations that he had referred Öztürk for work and had given him irregular jobs were untrue.

"THE CLAIM THAT I HAVE A CASH BOX IS FICTITIOUS AND SLANDEROUS"

Güney stated that the advertising volume Serkan Öztürk received from BELTAŞ was very low, saying, "I have no official or unofficial partnership with Serkan Öztürk as claimed. The claim that he is my cash box is completely fictitious and slanderous. The most important evidence of this is that Serkan Öztürk did not receive any work from Beyoğlu Municipality during my tenure as Mayor of Beyoğlu. In fact, Serkan Öztürk has clearly stated that he did not provide me with any benefits."

Güney also stated that the claim that a car was bought for his wife by the İlbak Group was completely untrue, explaining that they bought his wife's car by selling two cars they owned and taking out a bank loan. In the continuation of his statement, Güney said: "During the pandemic, municipalities and their subsidiaries were granted the freedom not to collect rent from advertising billboards by a Presidential Decree. Even during this period, I collected the rent from the İlbak Group without fail. If I had any unofficial interest relationship with this company, I would not have collected these rent payments in the first place. In the contract I made in 2022 regarding İlbak, I considered the public interest at the highest level, and the ownership of the advertising billboards, which are one of the most important items of the advertising area, was transferred to BELTAŞ A.Ş. from İlbak, which belonged to the previous periods before my contract. This step has provided a significant gain for BELTAŞ."

Güney, who stated that he acted with the awareness that every penny he spent in all his public duties belonged to the rights of the orphan, noted that he used his personal vehicle, which he paid for fuel and expenses himself, instead of the official vehicle to avoid municipal expenses during his tenure as the Mayor of Beyoğlu, just as he did in his position at BELTAŞ.

WHO IS İNAN GÜNEY?

İnan Güney was born in 1977 in the Örnektepe neighborhood of Beyoğlu, Istanbul.

Originally from Sivas, Güney grew up in a modest family as the son of a father who worked at the Beyoğlu Municipality. Güney started his education in Istanbul, graduating from the prestigious Kabataş Erkek Lisesi, and then completed his degree in Public Administration at Uludağ University. He later pursued a master's degree in Local Governments at Marmara University, contributing to his academic career with his thesis titled "Metropolitan Governance in Turkey: Political Representation, Issues, and Solutions in the Case of Istanbul." In his professional life, Güney worked as a financial consultant and was also involved in the management of his family's electrical materials import-export companies. Married and a father of three daughters, İnan Güney resides in Beyoğlu and plays an active role in various civil society organizations.

POLITICAL CAREER

İnan Güney entered politics in 1995 through the Youth Branch of the Republican People's Party (CHP). Entering politics at a young age, Güney held positions such as membership and education secretary in the CHP Beyoğlu District Board. He served as the CHP Beyoğlu District Chairman from 2011 to 2014. Between 2019 and 2024, Güney took on the role of group manager for the CHP as a member of the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Council, and from 2020 to 2022, he served as the CHP İBB Council Group Manager. In the local elections on March 31, 2024, Güney was nominated as the CHP's candidate for the Mayor of Beyoğlu, and he was elected mayor with 49.22% of the votes, bringing the Beyoğlu Municipality back to the CHP after 30 years.