ECHR rules on Huseyn Abdullayev's case

The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) has ruled on the case of former MP and businessman Huseyn Abdullayev due to the appeal of his lawyers on urgent need to provide him with effective medical assistance.

On 27 August the ECHR, in accord with Rule 39 of its Rules of Procedure, issued a decision obliging the Azerbaijani government to provide Abdullayev with additional comprehensive medical examinations to determine whether there is a need for urgent inpatient or outpatient treatment or any other medical intervention and to inform the Strasbourg Court of the measures taken, his lawyer Javad Javadov told Turan.

At the same time, he added, the ECHR has decided under Rule 41 to consider Abdullayev's complaint against his arrest as a matter of priority.

*On August 15, at the Baku Court for Serious Crimes, the defense applied for Abdullayev to be provided with a medical examination at a civilian clinic of his choice.

The application was partially fulfilled. Abdullayev was taken to the prison hospital for one day, where he had a visual examination and was returned to the Baku pretrial detention center the next day, lawyer Shahla Humbatova said.

On 22 August, Abdullayev was unable to participate in the Baku court session on serious crimes even via video link due to his health condition. The defense appealed to the European Court of Human Rights under Rule 39 of the Regulation for urgent interim measures to remove the threat to the applicant's health and life.

Abdullayev denies the charges in the new case under Article 193-1.3.2 (legalization of property on a large scale obtained by criminal means) of the Criminal Code, under which he is accused of laundering AZN 5.5 million.

**Huseyn Abdullayev held leading positions in the oil products business in the 1990s. Groups of young men under his control participated in the dispersal of opposition protests.

In 2013, he emigrated from Azerbaijan. A little later, a criminal case was opened against him for tax evasion. On 22 April 2018, Abdullayev was detained in Turkey, where he arrived from Germany, and extradited to Azerbaijan.

In Baku, he was charged with economic offences and sentenced to 6 years imprisonment.

Note that 47 days before the end of his 6-year prison sentence, in early March this year, a new charge of “legalization of money obtained by criminal means (Article 193-1.3.2 of the Criminal Code)” was brought against him.