ANKARA, Sept. 23 (Xinhua) -- Turkish authorities detained 13 people on Tuesday as part of a corruption investigation into the Ankara Metropolitan Municipality over 32 concerts financed by the municipality between 2021 and 2024.
The suspects include former municipal employees and executives of private event organizers accused of abuse of public office, bid rigging and other irregularities, said a statement from the Ankara Chief Prosecutor's Office.
Reports by the Interior Ministry, the Financial Crimes Investigation Board and the Court of Accounts concluded that the events led to financial losses amounting to 154.4 million Turkish lira (3.7 million U.S. dollars) to the public budget, said the prosecutor's office.
Of the 13 detainees, four were identified as former municipal bureaucrats and two as officials still working within the administration. The prosecutor's office said evidence against the suspects included official inspection reports and expert assessments indicating inflated costs and procedural violations in the awarding of contracts.
This is the latest in a string of probes into members of the opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), including Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, who was arrested earlier this year in connection with another corruption case.
Turkish authorities have launched a nearly year-long series of investigations into CHP-run municipalities across the country, in which hundreds of people have been taken into custody. ■
