İmamoğlu, mayor of Istanbul detained this morning.

Ekrem İmamoğlu, the Mayor of Istanbul, was detained in Istanbul on March 19, 2025. The detention occurred as part of a sweeping investigation involving allegations of corruption and aiding a terrorist organization. İmamoğlu is a prominent political rival of President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and was expected to be nominated as a presidential candidate for the Republican People’s Party (CHP) in upcoming elections1234. The opposition has widely condemned the detention as a “coup attempt” against a potential future president28.

Ekrem İmamoğlu, the Mayor of Istanbul, is facing two main sets of charges:

1. Corruption and Organized Crime Charges:

   • Forming and leading a criminal organization

   • Bribery

   • Aggravated fraud

   • Tender irregularities and bid rigging related to municipal contracts during his tenure as Beylikdüzü mayor and later at the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (İBB)236.

2. Terrorism-Related Charges:

   • Aiding a terrorist organization, specifically the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which is classified as a terrorist group by Turkey and many Western nations. This investigation centers on the cooperation between the Republican People’s Party (CHP) and the pro-Kurdish Peoples’ Equality and Democracy (DEM) Party in municipal elections123.

Several others were detained alongside Ekrem İmamoğlu. The Turkish authorities issued detention warrants for approximately 100 individuals, including:

• Murat Ongun: A close aide to İmamoğlu.

• Necati Özkan: İmamoğlu’s election campaign manager.

• Municipal officials: Dozens of municipal officials and council members from various Istanbul district municipalities were also detained.

• Businesspeople and journalists: Some businesspeople and journalists linked to specific contracts granted by the municipality were among those detained1256.

These detentions are part of a broader investigation involving corruption and terrorism-related allegations, as well as the “city consensus” between opposition parties in municipal elections16.