İstanbul’s jailed mayor, Ekrem İmamoğlu, testified to prosecutors on Wednesday as part of a fresh investigation concerning remarks he made during a recent court appearance, in which he sharply criticized prosecutors involved in his ongoing legal case, the state-run Anadolu news agency reported.
The İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office on Tuesday announced the launch of the new probe on charges of “insulting public officials” after İmamoğlu, who is currently jailed pending trial, described the prosecutors in harsh terms during a hearing on March 23.
İmamoğlu, seen as the strongest political rival of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, was arrested on March 23 following a major police operation targeting him and dozens of İstanbul city officials on March 19. He had been detained on terrorism and corruption charges and was put in pretrial detention on corruption charges, which many see as politically motivated.
During his interrogation before an İstanbul court, İmamoğlu, who has been the subject of multiple investigations in recent months, openly criticized the prosecutors handling his case, referring to them as “dishonorable” and accusing them of setting a “trap.” He claimed the allegations against him were fabricated and politically motivated.
He also accused the prosecutors of acting with political motives and likened their tactics to those used by terrorist organizations, saying such individuals were unfit to question or judge him.
The İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office said the mayor’s remarks constituted insults of members of the judiciary and launched an investigation under Article 125 of the Turkish Penal Code, which covers insults of public servants.
İmamoğlu on Wednesday testified to prosecutors via the judicial teleconference system (SEGBİS) from Marmara Prison in Silivri as part of the new probe.
On the day İmamoğlu was arrested, his main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) was set to hold a primary to select its presidential candidate. The vote was held as planned, and a record 15.5 million people cast ballots for the jailed mayor after the CHP opened the poll to the general public beyond its 1.5 million registered members.
The detention and the subsequent arrest of İmamoğlu have sparked mass protests, unseen in Turkey since 2013, leading to the detention of around 2,000 people, mostly students.