Milas Mayor Fevzi Topuz jailed in corruption investigation

A Turkish court has ordered the imprisonment of Milas Mayor Fevzi Topuz and his son, Doruk Topuz, pending trial as part of a large-scale corruption investigation. The probe, conducted by the Muğla Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, resulted in the arrest of 18 individuals out of 35 suspects detained during simultaneous raids across 13 provinces.

The investigation involves allegations of bribery, bid rigging, forgery, fraud, and the establishment of a criminal organization. Prosecutors allege that the municipality approved fraudulent work experience certificates for 34 different companies. These documents reportedly allowed businesses to falsely claim they had completed construction projects to qualify for public contracts. Investigators noted suspicious similarities among the companies, including identical bank account numbers, tax IDs, and IBAN information, as well as identical signatures on official documents.

Fevzi Topuz is a member of the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP). The arrests follow a trend of legal actions against opposition-run municipalities in Turkey since the March 2024 local elections. Opposition parties have accused the government of using such criminal investigations to undermine elected officials and reverse electoral gains.