12/11/2026 | Writer: Kaos GL
Akış, who had been held in pretrial detention for 77 days, was released under a travel ban. The next hearing is scheduled for March 18, 2027.
Tolga Akış, manager of Manifest, a popular girl group in Türkiye, and founder of Hypers Agency, was released at the first hearing of his trial on charges of “facilitating the publication of obscene materials.”
At the hearing held on November 12 before the Istanbul 43rd Criminal Court of First Instance, the court ordered the release of Akış, who had been held in pretrial detention for 77 days, subject to a judicial supervision measure prohibiting him from traveling abroad.
Akış had been detained at Istanbul Airport on August 28 as part of an investigation launched over Manifest's concert at KüçükÇiftlik Park in Istanbul on September 6, 2025. He was subsequently placed in pretrial detention by the Istanbul 4th Criminal Judgeship of Peace.
“Their forms of artistic expression may have offended some people, but that is not a crime”
According to Punto 24 Trial Monitoring, when Akış attempted to read his defense statement at the hearing, the judge told him: “No reading. Tell us what you remember.”
Akış stated that he had been held in pretrial detention for 77 days and argued that the indictment had failed to clearly establish the obscenity charge. He explained that the role of concert producers was to provide the necessary conditions for an event to take place and that not every moment on stage was planned in advance.
When the judge asked whether sexually suggestive choreography had been performed during the concert, Akış replied: “The girls' own forms of artistic expression may have offended some people, but that is not a crime.”
Akış also stated that the choreography cited in the charges had not been planned in advance. “It is upsetting to see Manifest associated with obscenity,” he said, requesting his acquittal and release.
Lawyer Kaya Pulat: “There is a difference between performing and publishing”
Akış's lawyer, Kaya Pulat, argued in his defense that they were not merely claiming his client had committed no crime, but that no act constituting a criminal offense had occurred in the first place.
Recalling that no one other than Akış had been placed in pretrial detention over the concert, Pulat maintained that the legal elements of the offense of “obscenity” had not been established.
Pulat stated:
“There is no offense of facilitating publication here. There is a difference between performing and publishing. Concerts have their own event rules. How could an organizer that prohibited recording have facilitated the publication of a recording?”
Pulat recalled that Manifest's members had previously faced trial over the same concert on charges of “indecent acts” and criticized the decision to bring a different charge against Akış.
Arguing that the grounds for pretrial detention no longer existed, Pulat requested his client's acquittal and release.
Prosecutors had sought up to three years in prison
In the indictment prepared by the Istanbul Chief Public Prosecutor's Office, prosecutors sought a prison sentence of between six months and three years for Tolga Akış on charges of “facilitating the publication of obscene materials.”
The prosecution alleged that Manifest's stage performances “disregarded society's sense of decency and modesty” and “degraded the concept of family.”
It was further alleged that Akış, in addition to being the group's founder and manager, was responsible for designing and financing the stage performances and publishing footage from the concert.
The indictment described Akış as the person who “determined the boundaries of the group's shows” and claimed that stage costumes, dances and choreography were used as part of a commercial marketing strategy.
Prosecutors also argued that the performances could not be considered protected artistic expression and that the exemption for scientific and artistic works under obscenity legislation should not apply.
Next hearing scheduled for March 18, 2027
During the hearing, the prosecutor requested Akış's release, citing the nature of the charge, the minimum and maximum penalties prescribed by law, and the fact that Akış had already presented his defense.
The prosecutor also requested that the case file be referred to the prosecution for preparation of its final opinion on the merits.
The court ordered Tolga Akış's release under a judicial supervision measure prohibiting him from traveling abroad. The next hearing in the case is scheduled for March 18, 2027, at 11:40 a.m.
Tags: human rights, women, media, lgbti
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