Searches in Internet TV Channel-13 Office and Aziz Orujov's Apartment

Baku / 03.06.17 / Turan: Searches were conducted in the office of the Internet TV Channel-13 and in the apartment of its executive director Aziz Orujov arrested on June 1.

Video cameras, computers, other electronic media and documents were seized from the office, the journalist's wife Lamiya Orujova, who also works for Channel-13 as editor, said. According to her, employees of the prosecutor's office did not take anything from the apartment.

As Orujova noted, in 2014 the activity of the TV channel was already checked, but the case was closed. Now three years later the criminal case was renewed.

She expressed concern for the health of her husband, who suffers from chronic kidney failure, increased blood pressure and heart problems. "Aziz was placed in the Kurdakhany detention center. If his condition worsens, then responsibility for it will be on them," Orujova said.

She believes her husband is being persecuted for his professional activities.

After 30 days of administrative arrest, Aziz Orujov, the executive director of Internet TV Channel-13, was charged on June 1 with illegal business and abuse of official powers, the lawyer Elchin Sadigov told Turan IA.

According to him, the investigation department for serious crimes of the Prosecutor General's Office charges Orujov with actions under Article 192.2.2 (illegal entrepreneurship with the extraction of a large income) and 308.2 (abuse of official powers that entailed grave consequences) of the Criminal Code.

As noted by Sadigov, the Orujov case was separated from the general case of dozens of NGOs, started in the spring of 2014. The charges are related to the activities of Channel-13 and the NGO Caucasus Media Research Center.

The journalist rejected the accusations. -06D--