Rufat Safarov Trial: Defense Alleges Police Involved with Accuser

Rufat Safarov

On December 8, human rights advocate Rufat Safarov, head of the Defense Line legal aid group, went to court in Baku on accusations of fraud, hooliganism, and causing serious injury.

Natig Imamquliyev claims Safarov cheated him. Imamquliyev said he paid Safarov 60,000 AZN (about $35,000) for land in Novkhany, but the land wasn't transferred and the money wasn't returned. He also claims Safarov attacked him when he asked for his money back on December 3, 2023.

Safarov strongly denies these claims. He says he doesn't know Imamquliyev and that the charges are politically motivated to get him arrested. He called the trial a show, saying the country, its government, and the court are all under tyranny.

Safarov's lawyers showed proof that Imamquliyev and the police may have worked together. Phone records show Imamquliyev talked to three police officers involved in Safarov's arrest before it happened. The data also puts Imamquliyev near Safarov's house several times before the arrest.

Imamquliyev wouldn't answer questions about these contacts. He said he didn't remember and didn't want to answer. He also said he can't read or write. Safarov criticized the government for using someone uneducated and rude to create a case against him.

Safarov was arrested on December 3, 2023, before he was to travel to the United States to accept a human rights award from the U.S. State Department. The U.S. Secretary of State later put the award on an empty chair to show support. Safarov was arrested in 2015 on corruption charges after quitting his job as a prosecutor to protest the system. He was released in 2019 after serving part of a nine-year sentence.