An İstanbul court has ordered the arrest of 14 suspects, including Ali Kaya, the brother of Dilek Kaya İmamoğlu, the wife of jailed İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, in the latest phase of a drug and prostitution investigation led by the İstanbul Chief Public Prosecutor’s Office, Turkish media reported Friday.
Kaya was detained in an operation launched on February 4 that targeted 19 people out of 27 suspects sought under detention orders, according to the state-run Anadolu news agency. The İstanbul-based prosecutor’s office is investigating accusations that include possessing drugs for personal use, facilitating drug use and encouraging prostitution or providing a place for it.
After police completed initial procedures, the suspects were taken to the Çağlayan Courthouse, where prosecutors sought arrests for 19 people and judicial supervision for others, TRT reported. The court ordered the arrest of 14 suspects and imposed judicial supervision measures on the remaining detainees, including requirements such as reporting obligations and possible travel restrictions, TRT said.
Kaya was jailed on an accusation of facilitating drug use.
Turkish outlets said the detainees in the February 4 operation included several social media figures along with the owner of a business identified as “Beca” and television presenter Gökhan Kalaycıoğlu.
The new arrests pulled the case deeper into Turkey’s opposition politics because of Kaya’s family link to Ekrem İmamoğlu, the country’s largest city’s elected mayor and a leading figure in the Republican People’s Party (CHP), Turkey’s main opposition party. İmamoğlu has been jailed since March 2025 in cases his party and critics describe as politically driven.
Dilek Kaya İmamoğlu criticized the detention of her brother in a statement carried by Turkish media, saying her family was being targeted through relatives.
The February arrests are part of an expanding investigation that prosecutors have linked to alleged drug distribution and use in nightlife settings and to prostitution-related accusations. The probe has hit a wide mix of suspects over recent weeks, including business owners, models, social media influencers and media figures.