Another person involved in the �Ganja case� about torture during the investigation

Baku/28.08.19/Turan: One of the defendants in the "Ganja case", Vugar Yusifov sent an open letter to the media about torture during the investigation. Yusifov is among a group of eight people whose case is being chaired by Judge Dadash Imanov in the Sabunchi District Court of Baku.

The defendant writes that on July 10, 2018, he came from Shamkir to Ganja to buy a phone. Since the stores were already closing, he was unable to make a purchase. After reading information about the rally in social networks, he invited his companion to go towards the administration and see what was happening. When they were about to leave, screams suddenly rang out. He saw two people lying on the pavement, and another with a dagger in his hands. "When I approached, the number of people increased dramatically. In the crowd, I was looking for my friend Elish, this was also visible on the video frames. Accused of killing two policemen, Rashad Beyukkishiyev passed me by. This shot was used during the investigation as an accusation against me," Yusifov writes. On July 23, he was detained and taken to the police station, where he was beaten for a long time and forced to sign some papers. The lawyer assigned to him by the investigation also signed the papers without reading.

During the search of the phone and the search in the house, they did not find anything illegal. However, Yusifov was accused of preparing the murder, participating in mass riots, arms trafficking and violence against the police. "The video shows how I walk around the square and do not touch anyone, what kind of participation in the riots is it? I do not know anyone of the other arrested people, and if I had been a participant in the crime, I would not have brought my child to Ganja. I was detained on July 23. If I was guilty, then I would have disappeared over these 13 days," Yusifov writes.

* July 3, 2018 in Ganja an attempt was made on Elmar Veliyev. the then head of the city of Ganja. A native Yunis Safarov wounded him and his bodyguard. After that, a protest rally in front of the Ganja administration building against Veliyev was scheduled for July 10 on social networks. On the same day, the Interior Ministry reported riots in Ganja, during which two police officers were killed. Following this, mass arrests were carried out among believers and others.

At a meeting in this department, Attorney General Zakir Garalov announced on July 31, 2019 that 29 members of an organized criminal group were brought to justice in connection with the attempt on E. Veliev, and another 11 people were put on the international wanted list.

On July 10 the investigation on the case was completed and eight lawsuits against 60 people were sent to the courts. The defendants were sentenced to various terms of imprisonment.-06D-