Ex-Ankara prosecutor faces bribery allegations over $300,000 payment

Allegations of bribery against a former Deputy Chief Public Prosecutor in Ankara have surfaced as part of an investigation into an alleged assassination plot targeting Aziz İhsan Aktaş, a whistleblower involved in cases concerning the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (İBB).

According to a report by T24, lawyer Semra Ilık stated that $300,000 was paid to Ahmet Yıkılmaz, who was then the Deputy Chief Public Prosecutor overseeing the "Demir Yumruk" (Iron Fist) operation. The payment was allegedly made to lift a freeze on the assets of Çağrı Silahtaroğlu, a suspect in that operation. Ilık provided evidence, including audio recordings from her phone, indicating the bribe was paid. Two other suspect lawyers also corroborated the bribery claims in their statements.

Following these revelations, the prosecutor's office requested information from the Ankara Chief Public Prosecutor's Office regarding the status of the investigation into Silahtaroğlu. The Ankara office confirmed that the asset freeze, initially imposed in June 2022, was lifted in October 2022 at Yıkılmaz's request. Prosecutors have labeled Yıkılmaz as a "bribetaker" and forwarded the case file to the Supreme Council of Judges and Prosecutors (HSK) for necessary action. Yıkılmaz, who also served as the deputy chief prosecutor in the Ayhan Bora Kaplan investigation, was recently reassigned to Erzurum before an appeal led to his appointment in the Western Prosecutor's Office. The current status of any HSK investigation against him remains unknown.