Istanbul prosecutors detain 29 in raid on municipal landscaping firm tied to wider Imamoglu corruption case
The Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office said it issued 30 detention warrants and police arrested 29 suspects on May 8 in raids on Tree and Landscape Inc., a metropolitan-municipality landscaping company, on allegations they ran a 'fictional tender system' steering procurement contracts to selected firms in exchange for bribes equal to 10% of contract values. Among those detained were the IBB deputy secretary-general and the head of the municipality's Parks and Gardens Department; one further suspect is abroad. Prosecutors describe the operation as part of a wider case against a 'criminal organisation' led by ousted opposition mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, named in a 3,809-page indictment completed on November 11, 2025, that seeks 828 years and two months to 2,352 years in prison across 142 charges; CHP says the prosecutions are politically motivated and aimed at blocking his presidential bid against Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
Turkish authorities detained 29 suspects on May 8 in raids targeting a company affiliated with the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IBB), the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office said. Detention warrants were issued for 30 suspects, with 29 picked up in simultaneous raids; the prosecutor's office said the remaining suspect was abroad and that efforts to locate them were continuing. Among those detained were the deputy secretary-general of the municipality and the head of the IBB Parks and Gardens Department, with daily Cumhuriyet identifying the deputy secretary-general as Oktay Özel.
The operation focused on Tree and Landscape Inc. (Ağaç ve Peyzaj A.Ş.), the IBB's municipal landscaping and green-space subsidiary. Investigators allege the suspects ran a "fictional tender system" to manipulate public procurement and steer contracts to selected companies, undermining competition and causing public financial losses. According to the investigation file, suppliers were asked to pay bribes amounting to 10% of contract values, with the money collected through company executives.
Prosecutors describe the raid as part of a wider probe into what they call a criminal organisation led by ousted IBB mayor Ekrem Imamoğlu of the opposition CHP. Imamoğlu was detained in March 2025 and removed from the mayoralty days later. Since March of this year he has stood trial alongside 413 co-defendants on charges including forming and leading a criminal group, bribery, money laundering, fraud against public institutions, unlawful collection and dissemination of personal data, destruction of evidence, bid-rigging and abuse of office. The 3,809-page indictment was completed on November 11, 2025 and lists 142 alleged offences, with the prosecution seeking sentences ranging from 828 years and two months to 2,352 years.
CHP and much of the Turkish opposition have called the case politically motivated and questioned the independence of the judiciary, saying the government brought the prosecution to block what would have been a competitive presidential bid against Recep Tayyip Erdoğan; before his arrest Imamoğlu was widely seen as the most viable opposition rival. The Erdoğan government and his AKP reject the accusation. The Imamoğlu case sits within a broader wave of corruption, bribery and terrorism-related investigations now sweeping CHP-run municipalities, with the IBB probe over alleged systematic corruption, fictitious tenders and abuse of public resources at its centre.