New investigations have revealed deep-seated corruption in district municipalities run by the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), which has seen dozens of its mayors jailed in a widespread probe into bribery and tender-rigging over the past two years.
Reports by the Sabah newspaper indicate that a deputy mayor asked a businessman to place a bribe into a vase full of flowers and deliver it to his wife in Mersin’s Mezitli district. In another case, it was discovered that some staff at Istanbul’s Ataşehir Municipality asked for high-value gift cards for shopping at luxury department stores.
In a corruption operation targeting municipalities in Mersin, the bribery network and methods allegedly used at Mezitli Municipality have been exposed. The district’s mayor, Ahmet Serkan Tuncer, was among dozens detained earlier this week in an anti-corruption operation, along with Mersin Mayor Vahap Seçer.
According to the Sabah report, Mezitli’s Deputy Mayor Atilla Küsbeci was meeting with landowners on behalf of Mayor Tuncer. During these meetings, zoning densities were increased and changes were made in favor of those who paid the requested bribes.
The money was allegedly shared among Ahmet Serkan Tuncer, Atilla Küsbeci, CHP Mersin Deputy Provincial Chair Kubilay Özsoy, Serkan Şahin and Hacı Şahin. The case file states that Kubilay Özsoy obtained TL 28 million (around $570,000) in illicit gains through these transactions, converted the bribes into gold and foreign currency and introduced them into the financial system, and purchased land in the name of his father. It also states that Ahmet Serkan Tuncer purchased a home at a residential complex with the money.
It was determined that Atilla Küsbeci and his wife, Merve Küsbeci, who works in the municipality’s zoning department, turned a blind eye to the construction of noncompliant sections at two luxury hotels in the city and failed to act on complaints concerning these violations.
The testimony of Serkan Canıtezer, a representative of Kayalife construction company, shed light on the alleged bribery method. Canıtezer said Mayor Tuncer and Deputy Mayor Atilla Küsbeci demanded a TL 5 million bribe for zoning and construction permit procedures.
"Atilla Küsbeci asked me to put it in a vase together with flowers and leave it at the zoning department where his wife, Merve Küsbeci, worked. However, I refused. I obtained the construction permit, but they demanded two separate renovation projects for the construction in order to receive the bribe. The head of the building inspection department, whom Atilla Küsbeci sent to my construction site, told me that a third renovation project would be required and said, 'You know the reason. There is nothing I can do; the order comes from higher up,'" he testified.
"I also reported the situation to CIMER (the Presidential Communications Center, a hotline for complaints from the general public). On Aug. 19, 2026, I went to the Anti-Smuggling and Organized Crime Department of the police with TL 100,000 and had the serial numbers recorded. I then informed them that I was ready to hand over the money," Canıtezer said.
A search of the home of Ali Özbaran, owner of Özbaran Enerji, who was detained in the operation in Mezitli on charges of "rigging a tender," "bribery" and "qualified fraud," uncovered 257,000 euros, $25,000, 64,000 pounds, 4 kilograms (8.82 pounds) of gold bars, 116 Republic gold coins, eight half gold coins, five quarter gold coins and 2 grams (0.07055 ounces) of gold, as well as an unlicensed handgun and tender documents.
Meanwhile, the investigation into Ataşehir Municipality by the Istanbul Anadolu Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office was expanded based on examinations of digital materials belonging to suspects arrested on April 20, 2026, statements obtained from suspects under the effective repentance provisions, testimony from witnesses questioned following complaints filed through CIMER and statements by suspects who allegedly paid bribes.
The examination found that some municipal employees had used high-value gift cards from luxury department stores and received money in foreign currencies in exchange for bribes.
The investigation also found, based on examinations of digital materials, that financial benefits were provided to company owners involved in zoning and occupancy permit procedures at Ataşehir Municipality by allegedly having them purchase purportedly "garbage containers."
Based on the evidence obtained, simultaneous searches, seizures and detention procedures were carried out this week. A total of 13 suspects, including Ataşehir Deputy Mayor Murat Güneş, were apprehended and detained as part of the operation. Numerous digital materials were seized during searches of the suspects’ addresses.
The Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office said in a statement that investigations aimed at combating crimes against the reliability and functioning of public administration would continue meticulously and with determination.
