Russia Requests Legal Assistance from Azerbaijan in Case of Mi-24 Helicopter Shot Down over Armenia

Baku / 05.01.21 / Turan: Russian military investigators asked their Azerbaijani colleagues for help in investigating a criminal case into the death of a military Mi-24 helicopter on the border of Armenia and Azerbaijan, a source familiar with the situation told Interfax.

"During the investigation of this case, it became necessary to conduct a number of investigative actions, in particular, to clarify the identity of a number of suspects, as well as some circumstances of this incident. In this regard, a request has been sent to Azerbaijan for international legal assistance," the source said.

He noted that only after the receipt of the relevant materials will the issue of charging the Russian military pilots be resolved.

"Since we are talking about foreign citizens who cannot be extradited, the Russian side will most likely send the investigation materials to Baku to bring the perpetrators to justice," the agency's interlocutor explained.

He recalled that currently military investigators of the Investigative Committee of Russia are investigating a criminal case under the article "Intentional murder of two or more persons" of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, which provides for punishment up to life imprisonment.

"In the near future, the investigation will be extended for another two months," the source said.

On November 9, the Russian Defense Ministry reported that the Azerbaijani military shot down a Russian Mi-24 helicopter over the territory of Armenia near the village of Yeraskh. The helicopter, according to the military, was shot down from the ground from a portable anti-aircraft missile system outside the war zone in Nagorno-Karabakh. As a result of the crash, two crew members were killed, and one more received moderate injuries.

The Azerbaijani Defense Ministry apologized to the Russian side and said they shot down the helicopter "by accident." They also announced their readiness to pay compensation for it.

The helicopter accompanied the convoy of the 102nd Russian military base in the air space near the border of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic (Azerbaijan), the Russian Defense Ministry noted.

The criminal case, which was originally initiated under Article 351 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation ("Violation of the rules of flights or preparation for them, resulting in death by negligence"), was later re-qualified to a more serious article - part 2 of Article 105 ("Intentional murder of two or more persons").  —0—