The deputy mayor of western Muğla province’s Köyceğiz district, Özgür Örnek, was arrested on Wednesday for issuing a fake building occupancy certificate.
A personnel working at the Köyceğiz municipality had written a complaint to CIMER (Communications Center of the Presidency) against Örnek for obtaining unfair material benefit.
Following instructions from the Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, teams from the Muğla Provincial Gendarmerie Command conducted an operation early Wednesday. Örnek was detained at his home. The teams searched the Köyceğiz Municipality and the suspect's home, seizing numerous documents and digital materials.
Örnek’s arrest comes on top of a series of corruption and irregularity scandals from the main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP).
More than a dozen mayors from the CHP and hundreds of municipal officials have been arrested in recent months for alleged corruption, including Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoğlu.
Imamoğlu, a popular figure in the main opposition, was arrested in March along with dozens of municipality employees and businesspeople on charges of corruption. He is accused of running a criminal organization that profits from rigged tenders and rampant bribery in exchange for building and zoning permits, as well as awarding tenders.
The CHP claims the arrests and allegations are politically motivated. The government denies the claims and says Türkiye's courts are independent.
