Turkish authorities have detained 14 suspects as part of an investigation into alleged irregular spending that caused an estimated TL 399.5 million (nearly $10 million) in public losses at a company affiliated with the Antalya Metropolitan Municipality, as announced on Wednesday.
The operation was launched following claims that unlawful expenditures were carried out through the Infrastructure Management and Consultancy Trade Inc. (ALDAŞ), a municipally owned infrastructure management and consultancy subsidiary and Antalya Water and Wastewater Administration (ASAT).
The Antalya Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office said the investigation centers on allegations of “aggravated embezzlement, bid rigging, abuse of trust, unlawful enrichment and negligence in supervisory duties related to expenditures” made through the company.
Prosecutors said legal action was initiated against 22 suspects, including Muhittin Böcek, the former mayor of Antalya, who was previously removed from office and has currently under arrest since July in a separate case. 14 suspects were taken into custody during coordinated police operations.
Authorities said four suspects were summoned to give statements, two were abroad, and one was not detained due to a recent surgical operation.
According to the investigation file, reports prepared by a chief civil inspector appointed by the Interior Ministry and expert assessments commissioned by prosecutors concluded that irregular transactions carried out through ALDAŞ resulted in public losses totaling TL 399,507,249.
The majority of domestic and international travel expenses incurred by officials from ASAT and the Antalya Metropolitan Municipality were paid by ALDAŞ, even though many of the trips lacked official assignment records. Prosecutors said some individuals whose flights were paid for had no professional connection to either ALDAŞ or ASAT, amounting to what investigators described as indirect embezzlement of public funds.
Investigators said transportation, hotel and meal expenses were recorded anonymously in accounting documents, concealing the identities of beneficiaries. Reports said accommodation costs were paid for individuals with no institutional ties to the municipality or ALDAŞ, including foreign national women, and that some stayed in the same hotel rooms as ALDAŞ employees and public officials. The accommodation facilities were generally luxury establishments, and alcohol expenses appeared on some overseas invoices, though the individuals responsible were not identified. These travel-related expenditures were found to have caused an estimated TL 63.4 million in public losses.
Separately, vehicles leased by ALDAŞ were allegedly used for personal purposes or by third parties with no connection to the company, with traffic fines incurred during such use paid by the firm. The resulting public loss was calculated at TL 24.8 million.
Audits also found that numerous company-owned mobile phones, tablets and laptops were missing from inventories and had been provided to third parties, causing losses estimated at TL 8.4 million.
Prosecutors further alleged that payments totaling TL 1.9 million were made under the name of “attendance fees” to M.K., identified as the partner of former Antalya mayor Muhittin Böcek, despite no actual service being rendered.
Additional losses of TL 2.7 million were attributed to salary and insurance payments made to relatives of Böcek’s daughter-in-law.
A software development project carried out under a “Teknokent” initiative was also cited, with investigators saying 94% of the TL 158.1 million spent went to personnel costs and that the project generated no revenue.
Those taken into custody include the former general manager of ASAT, identified as I.K.; deputy general managers O.Y. and N.O.; the head of the sewage department, B.K.; the head of financial services at the Antalya Metropolitan Municipality, identified as S.A.; the former deputy general manager of ALDAŞ, identified as M.Z.; finance manager M.D.; accounting and payment services controller P.B.; administrative affairs manager and IT unit supervisor Y.Ö.; sales and marketing manager L.E.; and drivers M.Y., A.Y., A.B. and Y.N.
The investigation remains ongoing.
Previously, it was found that the bribery network, which Böcek was part of, involved alleged kickbacks totaling TL 195 million from contractors who had won municipal tenders. According to prosecutors, the funds were funneled through a currency exchange bureau, converted into gold and used to purchase luxury vehicles. Investigators have appointed trustees to one currency exchange bureau and two jewelers linked to the transfers.
The case has widened to include Böcek’s family members and former associates. His former daughter-in-law was arrested in July on charges of money laundering, while his son was taken into custody upon returning from Vienna in August. Several municipal executives and businesspeople have also been arrested or placed under judicial control as the probe expanded.
