Baku Court of Appeal has left the oppositionist in custody

Baku/29.08.23/Turan: The Baku Court of Appeal has re-appointed Punhan Kerimli, who was arrested after deportation from Germany, to imprisonment for 5 years, the activist's lawyer Javad Javadov said. In November 2021, Kerimli was deported and two months later arrested in Azerbaijan on charges of illegal drug trafficking. Baku Serious Crimes Court sentenced to 6 years in prison. Later, the Court of Appeal reduced the term by one year.

On May 16, the Supreme Court partially granted Kerimli's cassation appeal, returning the case for reconsideration to the Court of Appeal.

According to Javadov's lawyer, the retrial of the case in the BAS is due to the fact that earlier the Supreme Court partially satisfied Kerimli's cassation appeal and returned the case to the appellate instance.

"We believe that the Court of Appeal did not comply with the orders of the Supreme Court. Two of the Supreme Court's instructions were of an acquittal nature, another concerned the qualification of the charge. That is, in the case there were no signs of a crime under Article 234.4.1 – the acquisition of drugs by a group of persons for the purpose of sale. Also, during the judicial investigation, it was not proved that the drugs were purchased for the purpose of sale. However, during the retrial, the Court of Appeal dismissed the charge under Article 234.4.1, but upheld Article 234.4.3. Nevertheless, the court upheld the imprisonment for 5 years, although it should have acquitted Kerimli," Javadov said.

The lawyer said that the defense will again file a cassation appeal to the Supreme Court. ---03B06---