Turkish court arrests CHP’s Istanbul Beykoz district mayor

Istanbul’s Beykoz District Mayor Alaattin Köseler from CHP has been arrested following a five-day detention as part of an ongoing investigation into alleged bid-rigging.

Tuesday March 04 2025 12:05 am

Duvar English

A Turkish court on late March 3 arrested the main opposition’s Istanbul Beykoz Mayor Alaattin Köseler, who was detained on Feb. 27 along with 18 others including his chief of staff, on charges of “bid rigging” and “abuse of office” in a house raid.

An Istanbul judge issued arrest warrants for 13 people working within the municipality led by the Republican People’s Party (CHP) while releasing five others whom prosecutors sought arrest.

It was alleged that Köseler instructed his Chief of Staff Veli Gümüş, Beykoz to award tenders to the same companies in 18 actions listed by the police.

Köseler stated that as the mayor, he was in control of the general operation and whether the project was finalized or not. Köseler stated that as mayor, he was delegated authority during the construction phase of the project.

He said that as a mayor, he was accused of matters that were not within his responsibility, and added, “It is clear that the relevant managers are the addressees of the questions asked.”

The prosecutor's office alleged in the referral for arrest that “in many procurements of goods and services made by different directorates within the Beykoz Municipality, various bids were received from the same companies that were in contact with each other.”

The prosecutor requested the arrest of Mayor Köseler on the grounds that he was responsible for information, instruction, supervision, prevention and control in the tender process.

He became the second mayor arrested from CHP after 2024 local elections. On Oct 30, 2024, Istanbul's Esenyurt District Mayor Ahmet Özer was also arrested on "terrorism" charges.