A court has placed Adıyaman Mayor Abdurrahman Tutdere under house arrest as part of a corruption investigation that has ensnared several senior figures from the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP).
Tutdere, along with Adana Mayor Zeydan Karalar and 11 others, was detained on Jul 5 in connection with an investigation launched by the İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office. The investigation focuses on alleged corruption involving public tenders and links to a criminal network reportedly led by businessperson Aziz İhsan Aktaş.
According to prosecutors, the network allegedly secured public contracts by bribing municipal leaders and senior officials. Evidence includes statements from employees of Aktaş’s companies, testimonies from detained suspects, and various documents. Aktaş, who was initially in pretrial detention, was released after cooperating under Turkey’s “effective remorse” provision.
Following his transfer to the İstanbul Courthouse in Çağlayan, Tutdere was referred to court with a request for judicial control measures. The judge ordered house arrest, banning him from leaving his residence while the investigation continues. Karalar, meanwhile, was referred with a request for formal arrest.
Other individuals detained include Adıyaman Deputy Mayor Ceyhan Kayhan, Büyükçekmece Deputy Mayor Ahmet Şahin, Şahin’s driver Sonkan Turan, businessmen Hayrettin Mermer, Burak Kangal, Rabil Artan, and Kazım Gökhan Yankılıç, attorney Onur Büyükhatipoğlu, former Seyhan municipal official Özcan Zenger, and two additional suspects, Ahmet Murat Mermer and İbrahim Emre Mermer.
Crackdown on CHP
If the Interior Ministry moves to suspend Tutdere, he will become the 14th CHP mayor removed from office in recent months. Among those already suspended are İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu and Antalya Mayor Muhittin Böcek, along with 11 district mayors.
The investigations into the CHP commenced in March, following the arrest of İmamoğlu and nearly 100 others, primarily municipal employees and officials. İmamoğlu, a prominent political figure widely viewed as a leading challenger to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, was later announced as the CHP’s presidential candidate.
The CHP has also been facing a separate legal case seeking to annul its November 2023 congress, which brought current party leader Özgür Özel to power, on grounds of alleged voting irregularities.
After surpassing the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP) in both vote share and number of municipalities won in the 2024 local elections, the CHP now controls 35 out of 81 provincial municipalities, including 14 metropolitan cities.
The CHP claims the investigations are politically motivated attempts to reverse its electoral gains. The AKP, meanwhile, maintains that the opposition is using political rhetoric to obscure misconduct. (VK)
