İmamoğlu uncovers irregularity... Bought cheaply from AKP municipality, sold to IMM for 10 times the price: Istanbul's Ankapark!

In an investigation launched by the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IMM) Inspection Board into the AKP era under the instructions of Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, 34 corruption files were identified. One of these files involves a multi-million dollar public loss concerning the former amusement park land on Fatih Vatan Avenue.

A LOSS LIKE ANKAPARK

According to reports by Sözcü, the 6,348-square-meter amusement park land in Fatih was purchased in 2011 for 25 million TL (approximately 13 million dollars) by Metal Yapı Konut, a company known for its proximity to the AKP. After changing the zoning status of the land, the company sold it to the IMM in 2017 for 429 million 733 thousand TL (approximately 116 million dollars).

According to the report prepared by IMM officials, the actual value of the land had dropped to 10 million 381 thousand dollars as of 2021. In other words, the IMM incurred a loss of 106 million 488 thousand dollars (approximately 4 billion TL at the current exchange rate) on this land in 4 years.

LINKS TO AKP FIGURES DISCOVERED

Metal Yapı Konut, the company that increased the value of the land through zoning changes and subsequently sold it to the IMM at an exorbitant price, belongs to businessman Ömer Saçaklıoğlu, who is known for his proximity to the AKP. It is known that the company conducted joint business with Ömer Faruk Kavurmacı, the son-in-law of former IMM Mayor Kadir Topbaş, who was tried in the FETÖ case.

The report prepared by the IMM included the following statements:

"When the lack of justification for the purchase of the aforementioned real estate, which was bought and paid for by our Mayoralty, is evaluated together with the subsequent changes to the zoning plans and the initial findings, it is understood that our Metropolitan Municipality was caused to suffer a loss for the private benefit of some individuals.''

MINISTRY DID NOT PROCESS THE FILE

The report prepared by the IMM was submitted to the Ministry of Interior in 2020. However, despite the 4 billion TL public loss, the file was not processed.