Ex-official of Azerbaijan’s national security ministry jailed for 12 years - UPDATED

Ex-official of Azerbaijan’s national security ministry jailed for 12 years - <span style="color: red;">UPDATED
# 30 October 2017 14:29 (UTC +04:00)

Akif Chovdarov, former head of the main energy and transport security directorate under the liquidated Ministry of National Security of Azerbaijan has been sentenced to 12 years in prison.

The verdict was announced at today’s trial chaired by Habib Hasanov, chairman of the Baku Military Court.

Under the verdict, Colonel Salim Mammadov, former employee of the main energy and transport security directorate under the liquidated Ministry of National Security, was sentenced to 11 years of imprisonment, and former officials Akif Aliyev and Orkhan Osmanov to 5 and 4 years of imprisonment respectively.

The court also made a special decision to send an appeal to Azerbaijan’s president for Chovdarov’s rank of general to be stripped of.

A state prosecutor had earlier demanded the court to sentence Akif Chovdarov to 15 years in prison, Salim Mammadov to 12 years, and Akif Aliyev and Orkhan Osmanov each to 9 years.

Chovdarov and other people arrested alongside him asked the court for acquittal.

Akif Chovdarov faces charges under Articles 145.3 (illegal deprivation of freedom of a person, causing to the death of the victim or other serious consequences by negligence), 179.3.1, 179.3.2 (embezzlement or waste by an organized group on a large scale), 181.3.1, 181.3.2 (robbery committed by an organized group in order to seize the property on a large scale), 182.3.1, 182.3.2 (extortion, committed by an organized group in order to obtain property on a large scale), 228.4 (illegal purchase, selling or carrying of gas weapon, cold steel, including throwing weapon), 302.1, 302.2 (implementation operative - search actions by not authorized persons, as well as implementation of these actions by authorized persons, but without grounds provided by the legislation, entailed essential, and the same acts committed with use of special means, intended for secret dredging the information), 311.3.1, 311.3.2, 311.3.3, 311.3.4 (bribe-taking by a group of persons on preliminary arrangement, committed repeatedly on a large scale with the use of threats), 313 (service forgery), 341.2.1, 341.2.2, 241.2.3 (abusing authority, excess or inactivity of authority committed by a group of persons, committed with the use of weapons, resulted in grave consequences) of the Criminal Code. The former head of the first department of the ministry’s main directorate Salim Mammadov is charged under articles 145.3, 179.3.1, 179.3.2, 181.3.1, 181.3.2, 182.3.1, 182.3.2, 302.1, 302.2, 311.3.1, 311.3.2, 311.3.3, 311.3.4, 313, 341.2.1, 341.2.2 and 341.2.3; the former head of the second department Akif Aliyev is charged under articles 145.3, 179.3.1, 179.3.2, 181.3.1, 181.3.2, 182.3.1, 182.3.2, 302.2, 311.3.1, 311.3.2, 311.3.3, 311.3.4, 313, 341.2.1, 341.2.2 and 341.2.3; the former deputy head of the first division of the third department Orkhan Osmanov is charged under 145.3, 181.3.1, 181.3.2, 182.3.1, 182.3.2, 302.2, 311.3.1, 311.3.2, 311.3.3, 311.3.4, 341.2.1, 341.2.2 and 341.2.3.

The court ordered seizure on property and cash worth of 33,466,000, trade and service sectors, greenhouses, aquaculture farms and other property complexes, land plots worth of 8,967,000 manats, private houses, apartments and vehicles worth of 24,445,000 manats, jewelry worth of 37,000 manats belonging to the accused persons –- Akif Chovdarov, Salim Mammadov, Akif Aliyev and Orkhan Osmanov to compensate damage caused to the aggrieved persons.

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