İmamoğlu rejects charges in expert witness case

ISTANBUL

Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu appeared in court on Sept. 26 over his remarks on a court-appointed expert, reiterating that the lawsuits filed against him are politically motivated.

The trial centers on remarks İmamoğlu made at a January press conference regarding a single court-appointed expert witness involved in multiple cases targeting municipalities run by his opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP).

He accused expert Satılmış Büyükcanayakın of submitting fraudulent reports in corruption investigations against CHP-governed district municipalities.

According to İmamoğlu’s office, although Istanbul has 8,806 registered expert witnesses, the same expert was appointed in 24 separate cases involving CHP municipalities.

Following his remarks, prosecutors launched an investigation against İmamoğlu for allegedly “attempting to influence a fair trial,” calling for up to four years in prison and a political ban.

İmamoğlu previously boycotted the first hearing in June after it was relocated from the Çağlayan Courthouse in central Istanbul to a court in Silivri, on the city’s outskirts.

The mayor, who has been imprisoned since March on separate corruption allegations, attended the expert-witness trial on Sept. 26.

He dismissed the charges as politically motivated, arguing that the indictment contained no concrete evidence against him.

“They are treating my criticism of a single individual as a crime. That cannot be the case — there is no such law. File as many cases as you can,” İmamoğlu told the judges.

He added, “If there is no law, there is no crime, Your Honor. I have criticized and exposed any injustice that hinders the course of justice and I will continue to do so,” the mayor told the judges.

The court decided to hold the next hearing on Dec. 12 and rejected a request to hear the expert witness.

This is not the only legal challenge facing the prominent opposition figure. İmamoğlu faces separate trials over remarks directed at Istanbul’s chief public prosecutor, a corruption probe targeting the municipality and allegations of falsifying his university diploma.