A Turkish court on Wednesday convicted Istanbul’s jailed opposition mayor and the chief rival to President Recep Tayyip Erdogan of insulting and threatening a public official and sentenced him to a year and eight months in prison, the Associated Press reports.
Mayor Ekrem Imamoglu, who is being held in a prison west of Istanbul since March 23, is expected to appeal the verdict, which is part of several ongoing legal proceedings against him.
The case, which predates his arrest, stems from comments he made on Jan. 20 in which he criticized Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor Akin Gurlek, accusing him of targeting opposition figures through alleged politically motivated investigations.
The court on Wednesday convicted Imamoglu of insulting and threatening Gurlek but acquitted him of the charge of publicly identifying him with the intent of making him a target.
