Türkiye’s National Intelligence Organization (MIT) has documented alleged links between a key suspect in a political espionage investigation and multiple foreign intelligence figures, according to indictment materials seen by prosecutors.
The investigation centers on former Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoğlu, who is accused in an indictment of ordering an election-related data operation in which the personal information of millions of citizens was allegedly copied. Prosecutors say the operation was carried out by Hüseyin Gün, a businessperson now described by authorities as operating under the cover of private-sector activity.
According to Sabah newspaper, two intelligence reports prepared by MIT were included in the indictment, prosecutors said. The reports’ findings were said to match evidence independently obtained by police during the investigation.
According to the first report, Gün maintained ties with Christopher Paul McGrath, a former intelligence official who later moved into the private sector. McGrath previously served in the United Kingdom’s technical intelligence community and later held senior roles in maritime technology and risk intelligence firms, the report said.
MIT assessed that McGrath had served in managerial roles connected to information collection under the direction of Britain’s signals intelligence service, GCHQ.
The report also said McGrath later acted as a consultant for a Switzerland and Türkiye-linked cybersecurity firm beginning in May 2024, but announced his departure shortly after his name appeared in the Turkish investigation.
A second MIT report focused on individuals listed in Gün’s mobile phone contacts, identifying 10 figures described as “critical” and conducting detailed background analysis on each.
According to the report, other individuals listed among Gün’s contacts included Christopher Charles James Sturgess, described as a former senior figure within the United Kingdom’s GCHQ, who currently serves as chief technology officer at the London-based firm Clearwater Dynamics.
The report also cited Martin Howard, who held the post of director for cyber policy and international relations at GCHQ between 2011 and 2014 and later served as deputy head of defense intelligence at the U.K.'s Ministry of Defense.
Another individual named was David John Charters, identified as a member of Britain’s foreign intelligence service, MI6, and described in Gün’s phone contacts as “a close friend of former MI6 chief Richard Moore.”
Additional names included David Frank Richmond, a former director general for defense and intelligence at the British Foreign Office; Joseph Charles French, who headed defense intelligence at the Ministry of Defense from 2000 to 2003; former British special forces commander John Taylor Holmes; Brian Scott, who has worked with U.S.-based intelligence firms Patriot Defense Group and The Ascendancy Group; Fiona Hill, a former analyst at the U.S. National Intelligence Council who served as a deputy assistant to then-President Donald Trump between 2017 and 2019; and David Meidan, a former deputy head responsible for foreign relations and operational cooperation at Israel’s intelligence agency, Mossad.
The prosecutor’s office concluded that Gün operated “under the appearance of a businessman” while acting as an intelligence asset, a finding it said was supported by both intelligence and police assessments.
In earlier testimony, Gün told investigators that he owned a company named Piiq and claimed to have partnered with Aaron Barr, whom he described as a former CIA officer.
Gün’s arrest last July triggered a new probe into the activities of Imamoğlu, who already faces several lawsuits, ranging from forging his university diploma and insulting public officials to rampant corruption in the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IBB), where he and dozens of other suspects are accused of enriching themselves through bribes and rigging public tenders.
