IMM Trial with 435 Defendants, Including Ekrem İmamoğlu, Continues on its 86th Day

The IMM trial, with 435 defendants, 51 of whom are detained, including Elected Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IMM) Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, continues on its 86th day in the new courtroom of Marmara Closed Prison in Silivri.

While the defense of 15 people was taken yesterday, the defense of 247 of the list of 325 undetained defendants was completed. There are 78 people who have not yet made a defense within the scope of the hearing, which is expected to end in the first days of October.

11.45 - HEARING STARTED

After Ekrem İmamoğlu and other detainees came to the hall with applause, the court panel also took its place.

The first person to come to the defendant's stand on the day of the hearing was AKM Yapı Chairman of the Board of Directors, Mehmet Karataş.

Karataş, who was accused of bribery and bid rigging regarding the tender process of IMM's Kirazlı-Halkalı metro line project, said, "We are companies with years of engineering and technical capacity. It is very natural that we can estimate, foresee and calculate the approximate cost in tenders. It is seen that offers close to the approximate costs are made in hundreds of tenders held by the state and its institutions every day in Türkiye."

Reminding that AKM is one of the companies that built the Eurasia Tunnel, Karataş said, "I have carried out my business activities within the framework of the law throughout my life. Today, I have a hard time accepting that my company, for which I have worked for nearly 40 years, and myself and my children, are facing such an accusation."