Former Deputy Prime Minister of Azerbaijan is wanted

Former First Deputy Prime Minister of Azerbaijan Abbas Abbasov has been placed on the wanted list in connection with the criminal case against Ramiz Mehdiyev and other individuals accused of attempting to seize state power. 

As reported by the " Caucasian Knot ," in October, the court  ordered house arrest for four months for former President of the National Academy of Sciences of Azerbaijan Ramiz Mehdiyev. In late November, his defense reported that Mehdiyev's health had sharply deteriorated . 

Former First Deputy Prime Minister of Azerbaijan Abbas Abbasov has been brought into the investigation into Mehdiyev's case and is wanted. Investigators believe Abbasov remained undetected for many years, under the protection of Ramiz Mehdiyev, and is now evading prosecution while living outside the country, the pro-government Azerbaijani news agency Report reported today.

Abbas Abbasov served as First Deputy Prime Minister of Azerbaijan from 1992, during which time he also headed several state commissions. After being relieved of his post in 2006, he moved permanently to Russia. According to investigators, in the following years, Abbasov attempted to establish control over Azerbaijani diaspora structures in Russia, using illegal means.

In 2012, he became the founder and leader of the Union of Azerbaijani Organizations in Russia, widely known as the "Union of Billionaires," and registered himself as the official founder of this organization. It is noted that Rustam Ibragimbekov, the head of the "National Council," created in early 2013 in Azerbaijan with the participation of Ali Karimli and his supporters, was a member of the Coordinating Council of the "Union of Billionaires" and acted under the direct supervision of Abbas Abbasov.

Despite statements made in 2012 by representatives of the "Union of Billionaires" about the absence of political goals, the events of 2013, as noted in the publication, "confirmed the opposite." It also claims that Abbas Abbasov, who had previously visited Azerbaijan regularly, stopped visiting his homeland in early 2013.

Audio and video recordings detailing plans to violently seize constitutional state power in Azerbaijan have been added to the criminal case file and will be widely disclosed during the open trial, the agency reported.