Prosecutor seeks sentence of more than 2,000 years behind bars for Istanbul mayor

A Turkish prosecutor is seeking more than two thousand years in prison for Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu in a corruption case in which the prosecution says he was involved in a vast corruption network.

Imamoglu has been in custody since March, denying the charges and his main opposition party has also distanced itself from them.

The indictment by Istanbul's chief prosecutor includes 401 other people in addition to the mayor. According to the prosecutor's office, the alleged network has caused damage to the state amounting to 160 billion Turkish liras, which translates to around €3.3 billion.

Imamoglu and his allies insist that the charges are unfounded and politically motivated.

(reuters, sie)