Two young men who said they have no connection with “AbzasMedia” were called to the police in this case
They were not given an explanation as to why they were called as witnesses in this case
On April 15, two more young men were summoned to the Baku City General Police Department for questioning in connection with the “AbzasMedia” case. They are Inara Hunbatova and Shams Hajiyeva, who have nothing to do with “AbzasMedia”.
Since April 15, the investigators of the Baku City General Police Department (BSHBPI) contacted them and invited Inara Hunbatova to the office on April 16 and Shams Hajiyeva at noon on the 17th.
They were not given an explanation as to why they were called as witnesses in this case.
Earlier, on April 10, journalist Ismayil Taghiyev was summoned for questioning on the “AbzasMedia” case.
Last year, on November 20, the director of “AbzasMedia” Ulvi Hasanli, his deputy Muhammad Kekalov, on November 21, the editor-in-chief of the website Sevinj Vagifgizi, on November 30, reporter Nargiz Absalamova, on December 13, investigative journalist Hafiz Babali, on January 13 journalist Elnara Gasimova was detained.
They were charged under Article 206.3.2 of the Criminal Code (smuggling, when committed by a group of persons who colluded in advance), and preventive measures of arrest were chosen. If the court accepts the accusations of the prosecutor’s office during the investigation, journalists face up to 8 years in prison.
Journalists deny the accusations and link their arrests to corruption investigations published in AbzasMedia against government officials.
Starting from February 24, the prison terms of all journalists arrested in connection with the “AbzasMedia” case have been extended by another 3 months.
International organizations linked these decisions with the groundless conduct of the investigation and said that there is pressure on journalists.