Istanbul High Criminal Court Accepts Imamoglu Indictment
The indictment prepared by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office against 407 suspects, 105 of whom are in custody, within the scope of the investigation into the “Profit-Oriented Criminal Organization of Imamoglu,” has been accepted.
The Istanbul 40th High Criminal Court has completed its review of the indictment. Following the preparation of the preliminary report, the dates of the hearings will be announced in the coming days.
Details of the Indictment and Sentencing Requests
In the indictment, the Directorate of Land Registry and Cadastre is listed as the “informant,” while the Ministries of Treasury and Finance, Interior, Energy and Natural Resources, Agriculture and Forestry, the Istanbul Provincial Directorate of Environment, Urbanization and Climate Change, the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality, and the Şişli Municipality are identified as “victims of crime.”
Charges Against Ekrem Imamoglu
For Ekrem Imamoglu, who is currently in custody, charges include: “establishing an organization to commit crimes,” “recording and disseminating personal data,” “concealing evidence,” “obstructing communications,” “damaging public property,” “bribery,” “spreading misleading information,” “extortion,” “fraud against public institutions,” “money laundering,” “bid rigging,” “deliberate environmental pollution,” and violations of tax procedure, forestry, and mining laws. The indictment seeks a prison sentence ranging from 849 years to 2,430 years and 6 months.
Organization Leaders
The indictment names Fatih Keleş, Murat Ongun, Adem Sütçin, Hüseyin Gün (detained for another crime), Murat Gülüibrahimoğlu (fugitive), and Ertan Yıldız (not detained) as “leaders of the organization.”
Fatih Keleş: Charged with 48 counts of bribery, 55 counts of bid rigging, 39 counts of fraud, 8 counts of money laundering, and other crimes, facing 556 years and 8 months to 1,542 years and 8 months in prison.
Murat Ongun: Charged with bribery, 53 counts of bid rigging, 33 counts of fraud, dissemination of personal data, and money laundering, facing 287 years and 6 months to 779 years and 6 months in prison.
Ertan Yıldız: Charged with bribery, bid manipulation, and fraud against public institutions, facing 86 to 251 years in prison.
Adem Sütçin: Charged with bribery, extortion, and money laundering, facing 67 to 194 years in prison.
Murat Gülüibrahimoğlu: Charged with fraud, money laundering, forgery, violations of mining, forestry, environmental, and tax laws, facing 19 years and 6 months to 51 years in prison.
Hüseyin Gün: Charged with establishing a criminal organization and manipulating personal data, facing 20 to 40 years in prison.
Legal Basis and Sentence Reductions
The indictment requests sentencing under Article 220/1 of the Turkish Penal Code (establishing an organization to commit crimes) and Article 53/1 (deprivation of certain rights related to organizational positions). Organization leaders are also held responsible under Article 220/5 for all crimes committed within the scope of their organization’s activities.
Additionally, for defendants Adem Sütçin, Hüseyin Gün, and Ertan Yıldız, who provided information about the organization’s structure and activities after their arrest, the indictment requests sentence reductions under Article 221/4 of the Turkish Penal Code (effective remorse).
