Trial of opposition activist Dashgyn Melikov begins in Azerbaijan

On June 7, the Sumgait City Court held a preliminary hearing on the case of Dashgyn Melikov, an activist of the Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan (PFPA), chaired by Judge Agil Abbasov. The defence moved a number of motions. However, since the prosecutor was not ready to express his attitude to the motions, the trial was postponed till June 11.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that the 22-year-old Melikov was detained on March 25 at about 4:00 p.m. in the city of Sumgait. According to preliminary information, the young man was detained on suspicion of making counterfeit money. Subsequently Melikov was charged with illegal possession of narcotic drugs.

The young man rejects the charges and believes that he is prosecuted for political reasons. In case his guilt is proved, Melikov is under threat of up to three years in prison.

His advocate said at the session that should the motion to release his client be dismissed, then, another motion should be considered: to replace his custody for another measure of freedom restriction, because the young man is sick with chronic bronchial asthma.

So far, it was impossible to get any comments from the Sumgait City Police Department, which had run the preliminary investigation of the case.

According to the statement of the Human Rights Watch (HRW) of May 27, Dashgyn Melikov is kept behind bars, despite the fact that the examination revealed no signs of his drug addiction.