Istanbul 10th High Criminal Court ordered the continued detention of Gaziosmanpaşa Mayor Hakan Bahçetepe despite the prosecutor’s request for his release. Bahçetepe was arrested on 5 June 2025 together with the mayors of Avcılar, Büyükçekmece, Ceyhan and Seyhan as part of a corruption investigation into Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality and was suspended from office. In an indictment prepared in May 2026 against Bahçetepe and eight others, the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office brought charges of “receiving bribes,” “laundering assets derived from crime” and “unjust enrichment.” In the opinion presented on 20 October, the prosecutor sought a prison sentence of between four and 12 years for Bahçetepe for receiving bribes and requested his release together with the verdict. The court instead ordered his continued detention and adjourned the next hearing until 6 November. Following Bahçetepe’s arrest, AKP candidate Eray Karadeniz won the acting mayoral election held in June 2025, and Gaziosmanpaşa Municipality passed to AKP control.
27 October 2026
Diken