Court refuses to reconsider riot case in Ganja

The Baku Court of Appeal (BCA) has dismissed the defence's motion that asked to consider the complaint against the verdict to Yunis Safarov and 11 other figurants in the case of the events in Ganja with a repeated full or partial judicial investigation.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on August 16, a Baku court sentenced Yunis Safarov, accused of committing an attempt on Elmar Veliev, the Mayor of the city of Ganja, to life imprisonment. Nine other defendants were sentenced to prison terms from 18 to 20 years.

On November 26, the BCA held a preliminary session on the complaint of Yunis Safarov and other figurants in the case.

The defence petitioned for holding a repeated complete or partial judicial investigation, Bakhtiyar Gadjiev, a Safarov's advocate, told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent. "The first-instance court failed to conduct an objective investigation. The defence witnesses were not questioned. The court also failed to question the victim," said the advocate.

According to Gadjiev, his client partially admits his guilt. "Yunis Safarov admits his guilt only in the attempt on the then head of Ganja. He motivates his act by the official's lawlessness and his rude manner of treating people. But my client was charged under 20 articles of the Criminal Code, including terrorism, creation of an organized criminal grouping and illegal arms trafficking," said the advocate, adding that the BCA has dismissed the defence's motion about a repeated judicial consideration and scheduled the hearing on the merits for December 15.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on November 27, 2021 at 00:24 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.