31.03.2026 13:34
The trial involving 402 defendants, including the detained Ekrem İmamoğlu, has entered its 4th week. The 13th session is being held today. The prosecutor announced their opinion regarding the 107 detained defendants. The prosecution requested the release of İmamoğlu's Chief of Staff Kadriye Kasapoğlu, Sırrı Küçük, Fatih Yağcı, Evren Şirolu, Ali Üner, Ebubekir Akın, and Davut Bildik. It was requested that the current detention status of the other defendants be continued at this stage.
In the 'Corruption' case against the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IMM), 407 defendants, including 107 who are in custody, will appear before the judge in the fourth week of the trial, including Ekrem İmamoğlu, who has been suspended from his duties. The requests for release from the defendants' lawyers will be heard in the 13th hearing.
AN INDICTMENT OF 3,809 PAGES HAS BEEN PREPARED
The investigation into the 'Corruption' case against Ekrem İmamoğlu, who was suspended from his position as the Mayor of Istanbul and arrested, has been completed, and an indictment of 3,809 pages was prepared on November 11, 2025.
İMAMOĞLU IS ACCUSED OF 142 ACTIONS
In the indictment, Ekrem İmamoğlu, whose name is mentioned as the 'Leader of the Organization', is accused of committing the following crimes: 'Establishing an organization for the purpose of committing crimes', 'Bribery', 'Money laundering', 'Fraud to the detriment of public institutions and organizations', 'Recording personal data', 'Seizing and disseminating personal data', 'Concealing evidence of crimes', 'Obstructing communication', 'Causing damage to public property', 'Receiving bribes', 'Publicly disseminating misleading information', 'Extortion', 'Money laundering of assets derived from crime', 'Interfering with a tender', 'Deliberately polluting the environment', 'Violating tax procedure law', 'Violating forest law', and 'Violating mining law'. İmamoğlu is facing a prison sentence ranging from 828 years and 2 months to 2,352 years for 142 actions.
FOURTH WEEK OF HEARINGS
The trial of the IMM case, which includes 107 defendants in custody and 5 complainant defendants, is continuing in the third week at the Istanbul 40th Heavy Criminal Court, in Hall No. 1, across from the Marmara Closed Prison.
The hearing will continue today, tomorrow, and Thursday, with the requests for release from the lawyers of the detained defendants who have not yet been heard. Lawyers are expected to present their defenses in order according to the defense list determined by the court panel. Each lawyer is expected to have about 15-20 minutes for their defense.
OPINION ANNOUNCED: REQUEST FOR RELEASE FOR 7 PEOPLE
A 1-hour break was given for the prosecutor to prepare their opinion regarding the detention. After the break, the prosecutor announced their opinion regarding the detentions. The prosecution requested the release of Sırrı Küçük, the driver of Özgür Karabat; defendant Fatih Yağcı, an employee of Ağaç A.Ş; businessman Evren Şirolu; Ekrem İmamoğlu's Chief of Staff Kadriye Kasapoğlu; businessman Ali Üner; public bus owner Ebubekir Akın; and Davut Bildik, an office staff member of İBB's subsidiary company İSPER.
The prosecution requested the release of these defendants at this stage, considering the duration of their detention and the nature of the charges against them, while requesting that the current detention status of the other defendants continue at this stage.
CRITICAL DAY THURSDAY
The court's decision will be announced two days after the lawyers' statements, on Thursday.