US Sen. Chris Murphy alleges ‘conspiracy’ behind Imamoglu’s arrest, claims Trump ‘greenlit’ it
U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT) speaks alongside democratic senators to press in the U.S. Capitol on March 06, 2025 in Washington, DC. The Senators addressed Trump's plans to close the Department of Education. Kayla Bartkowski/Getty Images/AFP (Photo by Kayla Bartkowski / GETTY IMAGES NORTH AMERICA / Getty Images via AFP)
United States Sen. Chris Murphy (D-CT), prominent critic of U.S. President Donald Trump, claimed that the arrest of former Istanbul Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu in Türkiye “was likely greenlit by Donald Trump.”
Murphy alleged that Imamoglu’s detention followed a phone call between President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and U.S. President Donald Trump.
However, Murphy did not provide any concrete evidence to support his claim, nor did he explain why Trump would take such a step. Imamoglu had been frequently visited by U.S. diplomats and business representatives.
US Sen. Chris Murphy shares conspiracy on former Istanbul Mayor Imamoglu's arrest, saying it "was likely greenlit by Donald Trump," though he offers no concrete evidence for allegation pic.twitter.com/eif0eS7Rtm
— Türkiye Today (@turkiyetodaycom) April 3, 2025
Former Istanbul Mayor Imamoglu was arrested on March 23. The accusations against Imamoglu include the questionable acquisition of three villas in one of Istanbul’s prime locations by his family’s construction company, in which he owns 60% of the shares.
According to official documents, Ali Nuhoglu, a close business associate of Imamoglu purchased the villas on his behalf and transferred the property to Imamoglu’s company after three years with low price.
Türkiye ‘sliding away from democratic norms’, Chris Murphy says
During an online foreign policy discussion, Murphy stated, “We haven’t yet talked about Turkey where we saw, just in the past several weeks, a massive crackdown on the opposition. Turkey is quickly sliding away from democratic norms.”
Murphy added, “It’s no coincidence that the decision to throw the opposition leader in jail was made right after a phone call with Donald Trump, likely greenlit by Trump.”
Imamoglu was detained on March 19 on charges of corruption and terrorism. He was later arrested on March 23 as part of an investigation into corruption within the Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality.
