Beşikçioğlu, a member of the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), was among 55 people detained in raids across nine provinces on July 30. The investigation involves 42 municipal officials, including three deputy mayors, and 13 representatives of companies that did business with the municipality. He said municipal tenders were outside his direct authority and denied having personal or commercial ties to the companies under investigation. He entered politics in 2024 and was elected mayor of Etimesgut, a district of about 600,000 people in western Ankara, the same year. İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, the most prominent opposition politician caught up in the cases, has been behind bars since March 2025.