11:47, 6 November 2020

Defence asks court in Baku to acquit journalist Aslanov

Polad Aslanov. Screenshot of the video posted at the Amerikanın Səsi YouTube channel https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p-8biHhxt2M

The defence of Polad Aslanov, the editor-in-chief of two Azerbaijani Internet editions, accused of high treason, has found his guilt unproved.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that in June 2019, Aslanov was detained on suspicion of espionage. He was charged with threats of murder or inflicting grievous bodily harm. On February 11, the victim withdrew his complaint against Aslanov. Aslanov's wife has treated the victim's refusal as an investigators' tactical trick intended to continue trying the case behind closed doors. The journalist himself has linked his prosecution with his work. On October 22, the prosecutor requested 17 years in prison for Aslanov.

"Although Aslanov is accused of treason, in fact he was arrested in connection with his journalistic activities. The indictment notes that by his publications Aslanov had tried to cast a shadow on the activities of law enforcement bodies," Elchin Sadygov, an advocate, has stated.

According to the Azerbaijani State Security Service (SSS), Aslanov "met outside the country employees of foreign special services and was involved in secret cooperation on the basis of regular monetary payments."

Let us note here that Aslanov was put on the list of political prisoners compiled by the Union "For Freedom of Political Prisoners".

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on November 6, 2020 at 09:30 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.

Author: Faik Medjid

Source: CK correspondent