Medyascope journalist Furkan Karabay has been placed under house arrest pending trial on charges of “publicly spreading misleading information”, following an investigation linked to Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (İBB), which has seen dozens of opposition figures and Istanbul Mayor İmamoğlu arrested.
 |
| Medyascope journalist Furkan Karabay placed under house arrest Medyascope journalist Furkan Karabay placed under house arrest |
Karabay was detained in the early hours of 23 January as part of the İBB investigation, which has seen dozens of opposition figures detained, including Istanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu. His lawyer, Enes Ermaner, announced the detention on X. After giving a statement to prosecutors, Karabay was referred to court with a request for pre-trial detention. The court later ordered that he be placed under house arrest while awaiting trial.
The case centres on an article Karabay published on 8 December concerning documents in the İBB corruption investigation file relating to Adem Soytekin, a construction businessman and a key suspect who later became a witness in the case. Karabay reported on documents indicating that authorisation had been granted for approximately 120 million Turkish lira to be transferred from a seized bank account linked to Soytekin for alimony payments to his former spouse.
The report drew public attention after it emerged that the same lawyer had represented both Soytekin and his ex-wife, later withdrawing from the case due to a conflict of interest. Prosecutors have since disputed interpretations of the documents, while Karabay maintains that his reporting was based on official case materials and served the public interest.
In their referral to the court, prosecutors alleged that Karabay acted in coordination with another individual using the X account @nazofcanada, whom they describe as a fugitive. They accused Karabay of publishing posts suggesting that a routine procedural document in the İBB investigation had later been turned into an official document for improper reasons, and of linking this to the reassignment of a senior prosecutor months later. Prosecutors argued that these claims falsely implied misconduct, targeted judicial officials — including some who had previously served in counter-terrorism roles — and amounted to the public dissemination of misleading information.
Furkan Karabay’s defense
Karabay rejected the accusations, saying his reporting was based on official court records included in the İBB case file. He said the article relied on a document submitted by Ziraat Katılım Bank that referred to authorisation for a 120 million lira alimony payment and was already part of the case documents. Karabay said the report was intended solely to inform the public and that his lawyers would formally submit the document to the court. He denied spreading misleading information, rejected the charges, and requested his release.
Attorney Hüseyin Ersöz, criticised the initial detention, noting that Karabay had previously been detained over his journalism. He warned that the repeated use of detention against a journalist risked undermining freedom of expression by encouraging self-censorship. Ersöz said non-violent expressions of opinion should not result in restrictions on liberty and described the case as raising concerns about legal certainty. He added that while Karabay’s reporting may have disturbed some, placing a journalist who regularly works at Istanbul Courthouse under detention measures suggested a misuse of authority.
