Court Keeps Ali Karimli’s Bodyguard under Arrest

Baku / 04.06.20 / Turan: On June 3, the Baku Court of Appeal, chaired by Rashad Abdullayev, rejected an appeal for the arrest of Niyameddin Ahmedov, an activist of the Popular Front party and bodyguard of the party leader Ali Karimli. During the meeting, Niyameddin Ahmedov told the court that the approval of the investigation into his arrest on the street was a lie.

“He was taken out of the pre-trial detention center on May 16 and immediately taken to the police and from there to the Nasimi District Court.

The investigator stated to Ahmedov that the political emigrant Gabil Mammadov, who lives in Germany, testified that he sent money to Ahmedov in Baku “to carry out a coup in Azerbaijan,” the Popular Front Party said in a statement.

Investigator Ramil Babayev reiterated in court that there are “suspicions” that Niyameddin Ahmedov and Gabil Mammadov are preparing to carry out a coup in Azerbaijan, and it is inappropriate to release or transfer Ahmedov to house arrest.

The court upheld the arrest of Ahmedov.

 Recall that on April 16, the Khatai District Court arrested the PFP activist Niyameddin Ahmedov for 30 days for violating the quarantine and disobeying the police.

On April 28, he was taken from the detention center of administrative arrest at the Ministry of Internal Affairs to an unknown place where he was brutally tortured. He was required to testify against Ali Karimli.

After the expiration of his administrative arrest, on May 16, Ahmedov was charged with absurd charges under Article 214-1 (financing of terrorism) of the Criminal Code and he was again arrested.

“The arrest of opposition activists on trumped-up charges is not new, but the charge of terrorism is absurd, and evidence that the government is increasing repression against the opposition,” said the leader of the Popular Front Party Ali Karimli.

It should be noted that another bodyguard of Karimli and his assistant were arrested on a similar trumped-up charge.

The start of this wave of repression was given after the speech of Ilham Aliyev on March 19, when he called the opposition “enemies and traitors” who are to be punished.    -03-