Court Review: June 8–10, 2026

Court Proceedings Involving Politicians, Civil Society Representatives, and Journalists

1.On June 8, the next hearing in the “Toplum TV” case was held at the Baku Serious Crimes Court under the chairmanship of Judge Azer Taghiyev.

At the beginning of the hearing, Akif Gurbanov addressed the court, describing the charges against him as “disgraceful” and stating that he did not expect a fair outcome from the proceedings.

Subsequently, Alasgar Mammadli stated that Ruslan Eyyubov, who is accused of smuggling involving five million manats, had been released to house arrest on health grounds, while numerous motions submitted on his own behalf had been rejected without any valid justification. He described this as an injustice.

Ilkin Amrahov then submitted a motion requesting that the money discovered in his home be removed from the list of evidence because his fingerprints were not found on the cash.

Ramil Babayev requested an acquittal, arguing that there were no witness statements against him, that his fingerprints were not found on the money discovered in his residence, and that there was no substantial evidence proving his guilt.

Ali Zeynalov reminded the court that he had withdrawn the testimony he gave during the preliminary investigation and asked that it not be referenced in the final judgment.

Farid Ismayilov’s lawyer, Zibeyda Sadigova, also submitted a motion requesting that all cash on which no fingerprints had been identified according to the expert report be excluded entirely from the criminal case.

Judge Azer Taghiyev stated that all these matters would receive legal assessment in the deliberation room, declared the judicial investigation closed, and gave the floor to state prosecutor Rauf Malishov.

The prosecutor requested prison sentences of:

• 16 years for Akif Gurbanov;
• 16 years for Ruslan Izzetli;
• 15 years for Alasgar Mammadli;
• 15 years for Ali Zeynalov;
• 14 years for Mushfig Jabbarov;
• 14 years for Ilkin Amrahov;
• 14 years for Ramil Babayev;
• 13 years for Farid Ismayilov;
• 13 years for Elmir Abbasov.

The prosecutor also requested that the preventive measure of police supervision imposed on Elmir Abbasov be revoked and that he be taken into custody directly in the courtroom.

In addition, the prosecutor proposed depriving all defendants of the right to hold certain positions in state and local self-government institutions for a period of three years.

To secure a civil claim amounting to 79,440 manats, the prosecutor further requested the confiscation of:

• A Hyundai Veracruz and a Toyota RAV4 Hybrid used and possessed by Akif Gurbanov;
• A Mercedes-Benz E220 CDI owned and used by Alasgar Mammadli;
• A Mercedes-Benz E220 CDI owned and used by Ruslan Izzetli;
• Five Chery T11 vehicles owned and used by Ali Zeynalov;
• As well as a two-story, five-room country house with an area of 280 square meters built on a 0.15-hectare plot of land owned by Akif Gurbanov’s wife.

The defense requested additional time for its closing arguments.

The trial will continue on June 22.

2.On June 8, the next hearing in the case of Election Monitoring and Democracy Studies Center head Anar Mammadli and human rights activist Anar Abdulla was held at the Baku Serious Crimes Court under the chairmanship of Judge Aygun Gurbanova.

The concluding section of the indictment, witness testimonies, and statements by the defendants were deemed read into the record with the consent of both parties.

The examination of documentary evidence then began.

Javad Javadov, counsel for Anar Mammadli, requested that the statements of the defendants, witness testimonies, court decisions, and search protocols contained in the criminal case materials be deemed read into the record.

Afterward, prosecutor Aygun Gurbanova announced documents related to grant agreements.

The next hearing will continue with the examination of documents.

3.On June 8, the next hearing in the criminal case against Mehriban Rahimli, the Azerbaijan representative of the German Marshall Fund, was held at the Baku Serious Crimes Court under the chairmanship of Judge Namiq Karimov.

The court continued by questioning witness Hafiz Hasanov, who had testified during the previous hearing.

In response to questions from the prosecutor, Hafiz Hasanov stated that he had four service contracts with the German Marshall Fund and had made no additional payments to Mehriban Rahimli under those agreements.

The next hearing is scheduled for July 29.

4.On June 9, Afgan Sadigov, the head of the Azel.tv website, was arrested.

According to a decision by the Binagadi District Court, a pre-trial detention measure was imposed on Afgan Sadigov until July 30.

Sadigov has been charged under Articles 182.2.1 (extortion committed by a group of persons acting in prior conspiracy) and 182.2.4 (extortion committed with the aim of obtaining property in a substantial amount) of the Criminal Code.

A. Sadigov was deported from Georgia in April. Although the criminal case opened against him in Azerbaijan in 2024 had previously been terminated, individuals recognized as victims applied to the Prosecutor’s Office in June requesting the reopening of the proceedings.

The Prosecutor’s Office subsequently decided to reopen the previously terminated criminal case.

5.On June 10, the Sabail District Court issued rulings extending preventive measures in a criminal case initiated by the State Security Service (SSS) involving former Head of the Presidential Administration Ramiz Mehdiyev, Chairman of the Azerbaijan Popular Front Party (APFP) Ali Karimli, former Presidential Administration employee Eldar Amirov, and APFP Presidium member Mammad Ibrahim.

The court reviewed motions submitted by the investigating authorities.

The court ruled to extend the detention of Ali Karimli by five months.

The detention of Mammad Ibrahim, a member of the APFP Presidium who was arrested together with Ali Karimli, was also extended by five months.

The court extended the house arrest measure imposed on Ramiz Mehdiyev for an additional five months.

At the same time, the court extended the detention of Eldar Amirov, former head of the Secretariat of the Azerbaijan National Academy of Sciences and former employee of the Presidential Administration, for another five months.

Court Proceedings Related to Corruption and State Institutions

1.On June 9, a court hearing was held on the appeal filed against the conviction of Bahruz Asgarov, who was accused of preparing an assassination attempt against Taleh Garashov, Head of the Executive Authority of Lankaran District.

The court dismissed the appeal and upheld the verdict of the court of first instance.

According to the judgment of the Baku Serious Crimes Court, Bahruz Asgarov was sentenced to 15 years of imprisonment.

2.On June 9, proceedings began at the Nizami District Court under the chairmanship of Judge Emin Akhundov in the criminal case against Zulfugar Mansurov, Deputy Head of the Department for Supervision of State Property Management and Efficient Use under the State Service for Property Issues.

At the hearing, the defendant’s personal information was verified.

The court decided to proceed to a full trial on the merits.

The next hearing was scheduled for June 23.

In November of last year, during an operation conducted by the Main Anti-Corruption Directorate under the Prosecutor General’s Office at the Executive Authority of Garadagh District, Deputy Head of the Garadagh District Executive Authority Nadir Muradov, Chief Adviser of the District Economic Department Gafar Abdullayev, and Deputy Head of the Department for Supervision of State Property Management and Efficient Use Zulfugar Mansurov were detained.

The criminal case against the remaining defendants is being heard by the Garadagh District Court.

The defendants have been charged under Articles 311.3.1 (accepting a bribe by a group of persons acting in prior conspiracy or by an organized group), 311.3.2 (repeated acceptance of a bribe), and 311.3.3 (accepting a bribe in a particularly large amount) of the Criminal Code.

3.On June 8, a hearing was held at the Baku Serious Crimes Court under the chairmanship of Judge Elnur Nuriyev in the criminal case against Zamiq Khankishiyev, who is accused of fraud.

During the hearing, H.C., the director of Supersement LLC, testified as a witness and stated that he was in fact a victim in the case.

He said that he had worked with the defendant for three to four years and had purchased concrete from him.

“The concrete plant was registered under Zamiq’s company. When he became indebted to me, the plant and an apartment were transferred to my company as repayment. Zamiq still owes me between 500,000 and 700,000 manats. I want the remaining debt repaid.”

The next hearing is scheduled for June 22 at 09:30.

According to the indictment, Zamiq Khankishiyev presented himself as a businessman with extensive connections, abused the trust of several individuals, and misappropriated nearly one million manats belonging to them.

In one of the episodes cited by the prosecution, a victim ordered 60,000 manats worth of cement from him for concrete works at the Olympic Sports Complex in Neftchala. Although Khankishiyev promised to pay for the supply, he later avoided payment and misappropriated the funds.

4.On June 9, a verdict was delivered at the Lankaran Serious Crimes Court under the chairmanship of Judge Ayshen Valiyeva in the case of officials from the Masalli District Housing and Communal Services Production Association.

According to the verdict, Maharram Aliyev received a suspended sentence with a two-year probation period, Gurbankhan Isgandarov was sentenced to two years, one month, and five days of imprisonment, while Yashar Heydarov received a sentence of restriction of liberty for a period of two years and six months.

The court noted that the majority of the damage caused to the state had been compensated.

The total damage established in the case amounted to 66,472.17 manats.

According to the prosecution, while serving as head of the Masalli District Housing and Communal Services Production Association, Maharram Aliyev, acting in prior conspiracy with the organization's chief accountant Gurbankhan Isgandarov, abused his official position and embezzled more than 73,000 manats of budget funds entrusted to him. The scheme was allegedly carried out with the assistance of Yashar Heydarov, director of “Mahammad-2022” LLC.

The indictment further states that Aliyev abused his official powers and committed official forgery by knowingly inserting false information into official documents for personal gain.

Maharram Aliyev was charged under Articles 179.3.2 (embezzlement on a particularly large scale), 308.1 (abuse of official powers), and 313 (official forgery) of the Criminal Code.

Gurbankhan Isgandarov and Yashar Heydarov were charged under Articles 32.5, 179.2.3, 179.2.4, 308.1, 313, and other relevant provisions of the Criminal Code.

5.On June 10, a hearing was held at the Baku Serious Crimes Court under the chairmanship of Judge Leyla Asgarova-Mammadova in the criminal case against Saleh Samadov, former chairman of the Council of Elders of Imishli District, who was detained by the State Security Service.

During the hearing, Saleh Samadov gave testimony before the court.

He stated that he partially admitted his guilt.

The next hearing has been scheduled for July 1.

Saleh Samadov is charged under Articles 179.3.2 and 308.1 of the Criminal Code.

He was arrested in May of last year.

6.On June 10, the judicial investigation concluded at the Lankaran Serious Crimes Court in the criminal case against officials of the Masalli District Housing and Communal Services Production Association accused of embezzlement.

The verdict was announced for the association’s head Maharram Aliyev, chief accountant Gurbankhan Isgandarov, and company director Yashar Heydarov.

Maharram Aliyev received a suspended sentence, while Yashar Heydarov was sentenced to restriction of liberty with electronic monitoring. The period spent under house arrest by Gurbankhan Isgandarov was deemed sufficient punishment.

According to the indictment, the defendants embezzled more than 73,000 manats of state funds entrusted to them. The money was written off under various pretexts.

Case materials indicate that 11,840 manats of the total amount were misappropriated under the pretense of purchasing food for stray dogs.

The funds were transferred at different times to Yashar Heydarov’s company. However, the stray dogs never received any food purchased with those funds.

The defendants reimbursed 35,380 manats of the damage caused.

Court Proceedings Involving Foreign Citizens

1.On June 9, the Baku Court of Appeal reviewed the appeal of Anass Derraz, Vice President of the French company SAUR, a corporation with a multi-billion-euro turnover, who is currently imprisoned in Azerbaijan.

The court amended the judgment of the Baku Serious Crimes Court and reduced Derraz’s sentence from twelve years to nine years of imprisonment.

According to the indictment, former head of French presidential security Alexandre Benalla and SAUR Vice President Anass Derraz participated in a scheme involving the solicitation of a large bribe and other criminal acts in exchange for assistance in lifting international sanctions imposed on the assets of Russian billionaire of Azerbaijani origin Farhad Ahmadov.

The defendants allegedly demanded a bribe from Farhad Ahmadov and promised that, in return, his luxury yacht Luna would be released from seizure and allowed to operate freely in international waters.

They also allegedly promised that Ahmadov himself would be protected from international sanctions.

An agreement was reportedly reached concerning the payment of a bribe totaling 6.14 million United States dollars.

Anass Derraz is accused of assisting Alexandre Benalla in obtaining a bribe from Farhad Ahmadov.

A request has been submitted to Interpol for the international search and arrest of Alexandre Benalla.

An Interpol Red Notice provides for the detention of a wanted individual in the country where they are located and their subsequent extradition to the country that issued the request.

It has been reported that Benalla is currently involved in extradition proceedings in a third country.

The Trial of the Separatists

1.On June 9, the Baku Court of Appeal continued the consideration of appeals filed by citizens of the Republic of Armenia, including Arayik Harutyunyan, Arkadi Ghukasyan, Bako Sahakyan, Davit Ishkhanyan, David Babayan, Levon Mnatsakanyan, and others. The hearing was conducted under the chairmanship of Judge Elmar Rahimov, with Judges Emin Mehdiyev and Mehriban Garayeva participating in the panel.

During the hearing, translations of documents requested by several defendants at the previous court session were provided to them.

Defendant Davit Ishkhanyan stated that he wished to review the transcript of the court hearing held on May 26.

The presiding judge explained that a formal request to the court was required in order to review the hearing transcript and emphasized that there were no restrictions on access to case materials.

The presiding judge then stated that the judicial panel considered it lawful to begin the procedural stage of court arguments in accordance with Article 394 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan, as well as the arguments presented in the appeals and the requirements of Articles 339–341 of the Code.

The floor was then given to the defense.

However, all defense lawyers except the lawyer representing Arayik Harutyunyan requested that the hearing be postponed to allow additional time to prepare their arguments.

David Manukyan and Davit Ishkhanyan, on the other hand, asked the court to continue the proceedings.

The court then declared a recess.

After the recess, the presiding judge announced that the judicial panel had granted motions requesting confidential meetings between the defendants and their lawyers and had provided the necessary conditions for such meetings.

The court also stated that appropriate opportunities would be provided to those wishing to address the proceedings.

Additional time would be granted to the remaining defendants to prepare their statements and arguments.

Following this, Anar Mammadov, counsel for defendant Arayik Harutyunyan, delivered his argument.

The lawyer requested that the court issue an acquittal for his client.

Arayik Harutyunyan subsequently addressed the court, stating that he fully agreed with his lawyer’s position and supported the arguments presented on his behalf.

The next hearing has been scheduled for June 16.

According to the verdict issued by the Baku Military Court on February 5, 2026, Arayik Harutyunyan, Levon Mnatsakanyan, David Manukyan, Davit Ishkhanyan, and David Babayan were sentenced to life imprisonment.

Arkadi Ghukasyan and Bako Sahakyan were each sentenced to 20 years of imprisonment; Madat Babayan and Melikset Pashayan received 19 years each; Garik Martirosyan was sentenced to 18 years; Davit Allahverdiyan and Levon Balayan received 16 years each; and Vasili Beglaryan, Gurgen Stepanyan, and Erik Ghazaryan were each sentenced to 15 years of imprisonment.

According to the judgment of the Baku Military Court, they were found guilty of crimes against peace and humanity, war crimes committed as a result of Armenia’s military aggression against Azerbaijan, including the planning and conduct of an aggressive war, genocide, violations of the laws and customs of war, terrorism, financing of terrorism, the violent seizure of power, and numerous other serious criminal offenses.