After months of detentionThe indictment calls for a sentence of up to 2,352 years in prison for Erdogan’s opponent, Imamoglu
The former mayor of Istanbul has been detained for months. Now prosecutors announced their sentencing demands.
Nearly eight months after the arrest and deposition of Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, the prosecutor’s office is seeking a sentence of up to 2,352 years in prison for the popular opposition politician, according to state broadcaster TRT. The indictment accuses President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s opponents of, among other things, founding and leading a criminal organization as well as bribery and money laundering, the Istanbul prosecutor’s office announced.
Acceptance of the charges by the court is considered a formality. Imamoglu is a promising challenger to President Erdogan.
Broadcaster CNN Türk reported that the indictment was 3,900 pages long and included a total of 402 suspects. Imamoglu’s party lawyer said the accusations were completely baseless. He expects an acquittal at the end of the trial.
Huge protests in Türkiye
Imamoglu was arrested in March on terrorism and corruption charges and removed from his post as mayor. He has been in custody since then. The action against the popular politician sparked Turkey’s biggest protests in more than a decade. Imamoglu himself denied these accusations. Critics see the move as a deliberate attempt by the government to eliminate the country’s strongest opposition party.
The CHP party surprisingly emerged as the country’s strongest force in 2024 local elections – which many interpreted as a possible precursor to replacing President Erdogan’s AKP government.
Since then, the secular CHP has been under pressure. So far, hundreds of its members have been arrested and 17 of its mayors have been arrested. The government rejects criticism of the approach and calls the country’s justice system independent. However, international organizations and the EU Commission have questioned this.
