Twenty-five people, including two deputy mayors, were detained in an operation targeting the Etimesgut Municipality in the capital Ankara on Oct. 13 over alleged corruption, according to prosecutors.
The Ankara West Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office said the investigation centers on alleged irregularities in municipal tenders, document forgery and the illicit acquisition of benefits through zoning and permitting procedures.
The suspects, including five municipal officials, were detained in simultaneous operations across five provinces. Prosecutors identified the deputy mayors only by their initials, G.B. and F.G.
Erdal Beşikçioğlu, the mayor of Etimesgut and also a prominent Turkish actor, has been in pretrial arrest since Aug. 3.
Beşikçioğlu was suspended from office following his arrest, and Seda Dilber, the candidate nominated by the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), won the Aug. 10 vote to replace him.
Following the formation of the New Party by Özgür Özel and a group of lawmakers, Beşikçioğlu announced that he would not join the new political formation and would remain with the CHP.
In an operation targeting the Etimesgut Municipality on July 30, 55 people, including Beşikçioğlu, were detained.
The latest arrests come amid a broader wave of investigations targeting mayors elected from opposition parties, which have intensified over the past year. Several opposition mayors and senior municipal officials, including Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, have been jailed pending trial as part of the probes.
