72nd Hearing in Istanbul Municipality Case: Şahan and Çalık Expected to Seek Release

The Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality case reached its 72nd hearing day with two detained district mayors expected to address the court over their requests for release. Resul Emrah Şahan of Şişli and Mehmet Murat Çalık of Beylikdüzü are scheduled to speak during the hearing week.

The trial is taking place at a new courtroom inside Marmara Prison in Silivri before the Istanbul 33rd High Criminal Court. The case includes 414 defendants, 53 of whom are detained. Their lawyers are also expected to make statements seeking release.

İmamoğlu is expected to speak on Thursday. Once all statements on release have been completed, the trial prosecutor is expected to submit an interim opinion, followed by an interim ruling from the presiding judge. Further releases are anticipated by the end of the week, although the court has not yet issued that decision.

The first statement of the day came from Tuba Torun, the lawyer and wife of detained former Republican People’s Party lawmaker Aykut Erdoğdu. The proceedings are continuing with live developments.

The indictment lists the Turkish Treasury and Finance, Interior, Energy and Natural Resources, and Agriculture and Forestry ministries, along with several Istanbul institutions, as parties considered harmed by the alleged crimes. It identifies İmamoğlu as the alleged leader of an organization and names several other defendants as alleged managers. Prosecutors seek a prison sentence of between 849 years and 2,430 years and six months for İmamoğlu on a range of charges, including alleged organized crime, bribery, fraud, money laundering and bid-rigging.