Trial in the "Ganja case"

Baku/15.04.21/Turan: The trial of the attempt on the life of the former head of the city of Ganja Elmar Veliyev continued today in the Baku Serious Crimes Court.  The defendants in the case are Yunis Safarov, who wounded Veliyev, and 11 other defendants.  Earlier, the prosecutor asked to condemn the accused to long terms of imprisonment, and Safarov to life imprisonment.

Today, the lawyers made concluding remarks, who stated that the trial concerns only Safarov, and the rest of the accused should be acquitted.

“The lawyers said that there was no corpus delicti in the actions of their clients and the investigation did not prove the guilt of the defendants. This is the case against Yunis Safarov. The law enforcement agencies simply inflated the case and unreasonably accusations were brought against many people,” Namazly’s lawyer told reporters.

His client, Firudin Zeynalov, has been on a hunger strike since April 13 in protest against the falsification of the criminal case. The next court session is scheduled for April 20. Three more lawyers are expected to speak at it. In the criminal case, Veliyev and five other people were recognized as victims.

* On July 3, 2018, an attempt was made on the life of the then head of the city Elmar Veliyev in Ganja. A native of Ganja, Yunis Safarov wounded him and the bodyguard of the head of the city. After that, a protest action in front of the Ganja administration building was scheduled for July 10. On that day, riots broke out in the city, during which two police officers were killed. This was followed by mass arrests of believers and others.

For these events, 70 people were brought to justice. The defendants were sentenced to imprisonment from six to 18 years. About 10 people were released on parole. The trial against Safarov and 11 others began in January 2020. —16D06-