Orhan Bakhyshly: �I Am a Political Prisoner� (UPDATED)

Baku / 04.06.19 / Turan: On 4 June, the Supreme Court of Azerbaijan changed the decision of the Baku Court of Appeal in respect of Orhan Bakhyshli, a member of the Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan, by assigning him a term of 3 years instead of 6 years.

At the court session chaired by Imran Hajigaibov, the prosecution was reclassified from Art. 234.4.3 of the Criminal Code of Azerbaijan (large-scale drug trafficking) to Art. 234.1 (Illegal acquisition, storage, manufacture, processing, transportation of drugs without the purpose of sale).

Orhan Bakhyshly was arrested on May 6, 2018 on charges of drug trafficking on a large scale. On August 8, the same year he was sentenced to 6 years in prison. The Court of Appeal put the decision in force.

Speaking at the court hearing, Bakhyshly declared his innocence and the political background of the case. According to him, the drugs were planted on him at the police station, where they brought him, detaining him in the park. "The task force was set up 2 hours after my arrest. When I was arrested, they told me that I looked like the person who stole a phone, then they put me in a car and brought me to the 26th police station of the Yasamal district, and from there - to the 28th station. Personally they searched me only 4 hours after the arrest. It was at that time that drugs were planted on me. Lawyer Elchin Sadigov and I asked for a video recording of surveillance cameras in offices during the trials. We were refused. When they told me about the inspection I demanded a court decision, and the investigator responded to me that he himself was the judge and the law. After that, they took out drugs from my jacket pocket, put them in front of me and said "this is yours." Police officer Shiraly Babayev put them. I demanded a court decision. Before that, I pulled everything out of my pockets, shook my jacket several times to check if there was anything left in it. How could drugs appear in it? If I were a distributor of drugs, my house would be searched but it was not. I do not even smoke cigarettes," said Bakhyshly.

Despite the fact that he demanded his lawyer, the police refused him and brought a man who not only did not defend him, but helped the police officers.

"I do not expect justice from the court, but I ask you to overcome the obstacle facing you and make a fair decision. I am a political prisoner. All political prisoners should be released," Bakhyshli said.

Lawyer Elchin Sadigov said that the decision regarding his client was unfair and the investigation was carried out with violations of the law. So, Bakhyshly"s search was carried out by an operative who had detained him, and this is against the law. Sadigov gave an example of a precedent of the European Court that if a detainee is not inspected for more than half an hour, and then drugs are found with him, they are most likely planted on him. "The witness was once arrested for selling drugs, came under pardon, and after his release he became a witness. Until when will such people appear as witnesses in drug cases?" the defender said.

Sadigov asked the court to acquit Bakhyshly and admit the violation of Articles 6 and 17 of the European Convention for Fundamental Human Rights and Freedoms.

The public prosecutor Jovdet Mehraliyev asked the court not to satisfy the cassation appeal and leave the decision of the Court of Appeal in force.

The court, having conferred, decided to replace the decision of the court of first instance and reduced the sentence to 3 years of imprisonment. -21 С--

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2019 June 04 (Tuesday) 17:04:10

The Supreme Court reduced the prison sentence to the opposition member

Baku / 04.06.19 / Turan: The Supreme Court, chaired by Imran Hajigaibov, considered a cassation appeal of the youth activist of the Popular Front Party of Azerbaijan (PFPA) Orhan Bakhyshly, who was sentenced to six years in prison.

The highest court partially granted the complaint, re-qualifying the charge with the Article 234.4.3 (illegal drug trafficking on a large scale) at 234.1 (Illegal acquisition, storage, manufacture, processing, transportation of drugs without the purpose of sale). At the same time, the court reduced the sentence to three years.

The defense insisted on justification, and now intends to appeal the decision of the Supreme Court to the European Court of Human Rights.

Bakhyshly was detained on May 6, 2018, the police said that he had 6 grams of heroin. The activist himself denied the charges, saying that the police threw the drugs to him. On September 18, the court sentenced him to 6 years in prison.

A few days before his arrest - on May 3, at an event on the World Press Freedom Day at the grave of journalist Elmar Huseynov, Bakhyshly accused the authorities of the murder of a journalist. According to colleagues, this was precisely the reason for his arrest. Human rights activists recognized Bakhyshli as a political prisoner. -21С-