Mustafa Bozbey, mayor of Bursa, Turkey’s fourth-largest city, and several municipal officials were formally arrested on Apr 4 as part of a corruption investigation. A total of 56 people had been detained as part of the probe conducted by the Bursa Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office.
The investigation is being carried out on charges of “establishing and leading a criminal organization,” “membership in a criminal organization,” “bribery,” “laundering assets derived from criminal activity,” and “causing zoning pollution.”
Bozbey and the 56 detainees, as well as eight other who had been detained earlier, face charges such as bribery, forming a criminal organization, and laundering assets derived from crime, according to the state-run Anadolu Agency (AA).
Since March last year, widespread corruption investigations have been carried out targeting municipalities controlled by the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP). As part of these investigations, several mayors, including those of major cities such as İstanbul, Antalya and Adana, have been placed in pretrial detention and suspended from office.
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Eleven released
After giving statements to prosecutors, Mustafa Bozbey, his brother R. Bozbey, and 51 other suspects were referred to a criminal judgeship of peace with a request for arrest.
The judge arrested Bozbey and several others while releasing 11 suspects under judicial control.
Following Bozbey's arrest, the Interior Ministry has suspended him from office, exercising its authority in cases of criminal investigations against local administrators. The ministry’s statement said the following:
"Bursa Metropolitan Municipality Mayor Mustafa Bozbey has been suspended from office as a temporary measure by the Interior Ministry, in accordance with Article 127 of the Constitution and Article 47 of Municipal Law No. 5393, following his arrest by the Bursa 6th Criminal Judgeship of Peace on Apr 4, 2026, on charges of ‘establishing and leading a criminal organization and accepting bribes.’"
Bozbey is expected to be replaced by an acting mayor selected by the city council.
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'We will meet again in free days'
Following Bozbey’s arrest, a statement was shared on his social media account:
“Bursa did not deserve this. An injustice has been done to the will and efforts of the people of Bursa. No one should lose hope, we will meet again in free days. We will continue to work and produce for our Bursa. Our word is our promise: Bursa will get what it deserves. Bursa will win!”
Gül Çiftçi, deputy chair responsible for election and legal affairs of the CHP, criticized Bozbey’s arrest in a social media a post, claiming that it was based solely on witness testimonies:
“Mustafa Bozbey left his post as Nilüfer mayor in 2019, did not hold any office for five years, and won the elections on March 31, 2024 as our party’s candidate for Bursa Metropolitan Mayor. Turning an allegation dating back seven years into grounds for arrest today, based solely on witness testimony, is an open conspiracy against the will of the people of Bursa.
“We all know that Mustafa Bozbey has been deprived of his freedom today because he refused to submit to any imposition aimed at undermining his will, despite clear and implicit pressure directed at him.
“We stand by our mayor. We will continue our struggle with determination until this unlawfulness comes to an end.”
(VC/VK)
