Accused of torture and murder: Azerbaijan files case against Russian security forces

According to the investigation, on June 27, officers from Russia’s National Guard, Interior Ministry, and FSB detained several Azerbaijani citizens as part of "operational search activities." During the detention, transport, and confinement in administrative buildings, the detainees were beaten with hard objects and denied any opportunity to defend themselves.

As a result, 60-year-old businessman Huseyn Safarov died in the Interior Ministry premises, and his brother, 55-year-old taxi driver Ziyeddin Safarov, died the following morning in a special unit vehicle.

A forensic examination confirmed that the cause of death was multiple fractures and severe traumatic shock.

Several other Azerbaijani citizens were hospitalized after the detention with injuries of varying severity.

The Azerbaijani Prosecutor’s Office has classified these actions as intentional murder with exceptional cruelty, abuse of power, and torture resulting in death. The case is being handled by the Investigative Department of the Azerbaijani Prosecutor General’s Office, and a special investigative group has been formed.

What happened before

On Friday, June 27, Russian security forces conducted a raid in Yekaterinburg. Following the operation, two Azerbaijani nationals who had been detained died as a result.

On June 30, police in Azerbaijan’s capital, Baku, searched the office of the Russian propaganda outlet Sputnik-Azerbaijan (a branch of the Russian state agency Rossiya Segodnya) and detained two FSB agents.

Today, it was revealed that following the raid, seven employees of Sputnik-Azerbaijan have become suspects in a criminal case. Two of them have been arrested, while five others have been charged.