Turkish prosecutors have charged Istanbul's jailed mayor, Ekrem İmamoğlu, with 142 offences that could carry a penalty of hundreds of years in prison, in a move widely seen as politically motivated. The indictment, filed on Tuesday and running to nearly 4,000 pages, accuses the opposition figure of running a criminal organisation, bribery, embezzlement, money laundering, extortion and tender rigging.
According to the state news agency Anadolu, prosecutors are seeking prison sentences that could total up to 2,430 years if he is found guilty. İmamoğlu, the main political rival of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, was arrested on 19 March, sparking some of the worst street unrest in Turkey since 2013.
The leader of the Republican People's party (CHP), Özgür Özel, said the charges were intended to prevent İmamoğlu from running for president in the 2028 election. “This case is not legal, it is entirely political. Its purpose is to stop the CHP, which came first in the last local elections, and to block its presidential candidate,” he wrote on X.
The indictment, which names 402 suspects, also includes allegations of espionage and faking his university degree, which could lead to a political ban. Prosecutors claim İmamoğlu headed a crime network over which he exerted influence “like an octopus”. In an address to parliament, Özel said İmamoğlu would be the party's candidate in the next presidential vote, adding: “His only crime is running for the presidency of this country.”
The CHP has faced increasing pressure since winning control of Turkey's largest cities in March 2024, with 16 of its mayors since jailed. The indictment also includes a filing with Turkey's top appeals court against the CHP, which observers say could pave the way for the party's closure, though prosecutors denied seeking its shutdown.
