Üsküdar Municipality files a criminal complaint against Hilmi Türkmen! The allegations against him are quite serious.

The Istanbul Anatolian Courthouse Public Prosecutor's Office received a serious complaint against Hilmi Türkmen, who served as the Mayor of Üsküdar Municipality between 2014 and 2024.

WERE IRREGULARITIES COMMITTED?

The complaint letter included irregularities that occurred after the signing of the "Land Sale Revenue Sharing Construction Agreement" between Üsküdar Municipality and Kalyon Construction Industry and Trade Inc. for the property owned by Üsküdar Municipality in "Mimar Sinan Neighborhood, 59th map, 2651st parcel, with an area of 13,840.79 square meters". According to the agreement, the total income from the sale of residential, office, commercial areas, and shops resulting from the construction would be shared between the parties, with 45% as the Administrative Share Income Ratio and 55% as the Contractor Share Income Ratio.

DECLARED TO BE COMPLETED IN 750 DAYS

The contractor company declared that they would complete the construction within 750 days from the date of the agreement. The contractor company guaranteed to pay Üsküdar Municipality 395,325,000 Turkish Lira + VAT, which corresponds to 45% of the total expected sales income of 878,500,000 Turkish Lira + VAT, on the specified payment dates.

DID TÜRKMEN CHANGE THE CONTRACT WITH HIS APPROVAL?

The complaint letter stated that after the signing of the contract, the contractor company made a written request to the municipality on April 6, 2017, five days before the payment date of April 11, 2017, to change the contract. The request included extending the completion period of the construction by 520 days and changing the payment dates and amounts that the contractor had to make to the municipality, effectively "postponing" them. It was noted that with the approval of Hilmi Türkmen, the completion period of the construction was extended from 750 days to 1270 days, and the payment dates of the contractor to the municipality were postponed to later dates. The changes were documented on May 10, 2017, in the presence of a notary, and it was emphasized that this extension of the period created a "public loss".

THEY TRIED TO CHANGE THE CONTRACT ONCE AGAIN

The complaint letter stated that the contractor company made another application to the municipality on January 17, 2019, requesting a substantial change in the contract. With the approval of Türkmen once again, the duration of the project was extended from 1270 days to 2270 days. The payment methods and terms were also changed.

THE MUNICIPALITY WAIVED ITS CLAIMS

The complaint letter stated that "the municipality postponed its claim of 135,896,250 Turkish Lira, which had a due date, without demanding any interest; it also postponed its short-term claim of 158,130,000 Turkish Lira to a much longer term without demanding any interest, and waived its claim of 18,043,000 Turkish Lira". It was emphasized that former Mayor Hilmi Türkmen, who caused a significant amount of public loss, and other deputy mayors responsible for this transaction, abused their authority in favor of the contractor company and to the detriment of the municipality.

"LEFT TO THE DISCRETION OF THE CONTRACTOR"

The complaint letter stated that instead of collecting the sales revenues from the independent units in an account opened in the name of the municipality at a bank, the revenues were directly deposited into the contractor's account, which would be under the control of the contractor. It was stated in the letter, "While the control and disposal of the sales revenues were in the hands of the municipality, they were completely left to the discretion of the contractor, making it impossible to monitor the payment dates and amounts owed to the municipality."

"395 MILLION TL REDUCED TO 375 MILLION TL"

The complaint letter stated that the revision of the contractor's share of the total sales income, which was originally set at 395,325,000 Turkish Lira + VAT, to 375,282,000 Turkish Lira + VAT, caused a public loss to the municipality.

"APPROVAL GIVEN FOR LOW PRICES"

The complaint letter highlighted that contrary to the provisions of the contract, the municipality officials approved the sales based on low prices in a real estate valuation report prepared by the contractor without conducting an independent valuation. It was stated, "Interestingly, according to the information in the valuation report prepared by the contractor's licensed real estate company, the headquarters addresses of the contractor company and the real estate appraisal company were the same. Based on the proposed sale prices in the request letter attached to the proposal made by the contractor, 173 residential units, shops, and cinemas within 130 stores in the shopping mall were sold. Moreover, without any objection, the sales were made between the same group company, which was the seller (with the power of attorney given by the mayor), and the buyer."

"TAKE NECESSARY ACTIONS AGAINST THOSE RESPONSIBLE"

The complaint letter concluded with the request for an investigation to be initiated against former Mayor Hilmi Türkmen, who abused his position and caused a public loss, as well as other individuals who would be identified during the investigation. It also requested that the Üsküdar Municipality be informed about the investigation as a party affected by the outcome of the investigation.