Toplum TV Case: Witnesses Say Statements Obtained Under Pressure

The Baku Grave Crimes Court held the latest hearing in the Toplum TV case on November 3, with Judge Azer Tagiyev presiding. Arrests related to this case started in March 2024.

Ten people face charges in this case.

Originally accused of smuggling, the charges against them were later made more serious. Before the witnesses were questioned, Ruslan Izzetli, a defendant and a founding member of the Third Republic Platform, objected to the court's composition.

He sarcastically mentioned that many prisoners in the Baku Pre-Trial Detention Center have positive things to say about Judge Azer Taghiyev:

To save you from getting involved in this mess, I want you to remove yourself from the chairmanship. During the previous trial, you were influencing witnesses, acting more like a state prosecutor than a judge.

Akif Gurbanov, another defendant and the head of the Institute for Democratic Initiatives (IDI), supported the protest.

The witnesses told you they made their statements under pressure during the investigation, but you didn't ask how that pressure was applied. You're not creating an atmosphere where witnesses can feel comfortable, and then you accuse them of being insincere. How are you measuring sincerity? Gurbanov asked the judge.

Ali Zeynal, an imprisoned IDI employee, also joined the protest, noting that, unlike Ruslan Izzetli, he only heard bad things about Azer Tagiyev in the detention center.

Alasgar Mammadli, a co-founder of Toplum TV and media expert, also spoke out, criticizing Azer Tagiyev.

I've been thinking for a week about something you said to the witnesses and the courtroom during the last trial. You said we have to prove we're not criminals. How can you say something like that? A court should be impartial and make the right decision. You know that what you did violates Article 63 of the Constitution and the Criminal Code regarding the presumption of innocence. According to the law, no one can call someone a criminal until a verdict is issued. If a judge says this, why are we even here? It seems you've already made your decision before the trial is even over, he stated.

The judges considered the objection but did not grant it, and the trial continued with witness questioning.

Shahin Maharramli, a friend of A. Gurbanov and a witness in the case, refused to sign the statement he had signed during the preliminary investigation. He claimed the statement wasn't written in his own words, that he signed it under pressure, and that he wasn't allowed to read it.

While reading the witness's statement from the investigation, the judge revealed that A. Gurbanov allegedly asked Sh. Maharramli to bring a car from abroad and register it in his wife's name, not his own, because he was afraid of losing the grants he had gotten. Sh. Maharramli told the court that A. Gurbanov did ask him to do this because his brother was in the car business, but the reason the car wasn't registered in his name was due to a problem with his IDP document.

Sh. Maharramli's statement also said that A. Gurbanov had asked him to borrow 30,000 manats from him to pay his employees' salaries because the grant was late. Sh. Maharramli confirmed that his friend did ask for a loan but didn't specify the reason.

It happens. We all ask friends for loans. I've asked him for a loan, too, he said.

The defense reminded the witness that he had been sentenced to 30 days of administrative detention and asked him why. The judge objected, saying this question wasn't relevant, but A. Gurbanov and his lawyer insisted.

Sh. Maharramli stated that the police told him he was arrested for being friends with A. Gurbanov. The public prosecutor said there was no such law. The witness said the official charge was resisting the police. The judge recorded the witness's statement in court, differing from the preliminary investigation.

Javid Ramazanov, a former Toplum TV employee and writer, also testified that he made his statement during the preliminary investigation under pressure. He said he wasn't given a lawyer during his detention and was threatened with pre-trial detention.

Tensions arose between the judge and Alya Yagublu, a political commentator and host on Toplum TV, who was the next witness. A. Gurbanov and Alasgar Mammadli intervened and criticized the judge's tone. Farid Ismayilov, one of the defendants, also spoke up and protested to the judge:

You're showing intolerance to two questions, shouting at us. Imagine the pressure in the closed investigation rooms.

The judge then asked A. Yagublu how he knew A. Gurbanov. He replied that he had known A. Gurbanov since he began working at Toplum TV.

Akif Gurbanov is a good and helpful person. I appreciate him for creating a professional media outlet like Toplum TV when independent media in Azerbaijan was struggling. The country's most talented journalists worked at Toplum. We invited Akif to our program and criticized him, but he always answered our questions, he said.

The hearing then ended, with the next one scheduled for November 24 to continue questioning witnesses.

The Toplum TV case involves a total of 10 defendants, including Akif Gurbanov, Ruslan Izzetli, Alasgar Mammadli, Mushfig Jabbar, Farid Ismayilov, Ali Zeynal, Ilkin Amrahov, and Ramil Babayev. Journalist Elmir Abbasov is under police supervision, and Toplum TV editor Shahnaz Beylargizi was initially under house arrest but is now under police supervision.

The defendants were first charged with smuggling, but the charges were later made more serious. They claim the charges are politically motivated and that their arrests were ordered.

On November 3, the Baku Grave Crimes Court continued the Toplum TV case trial, with Judge Azer Tagiyev presiding.

Before the questioning of witnesses, Ruslan Izzetli objected to the court's composition, saying that many prisoners in the Baku Pre-Trial Detention Center have said positive things about Judge A. Tagiyev:

To keep you from being involved in this mess, I want you to step down from the presidency. You were influencing witnesses in the last trial and acting like a public prosecutor, not a judge.

Akif Gurbanov also protested, stating:

Witnesses told you they made their statements under pressure, but you didn't ask how that pressure was applied. You're not creating a comfortable atmosphere for witnesses and then accusing them of being insincere. How do you measure this?

Ali Zeynal added that unlike R. Izzetli, he only heard negative things about A. Tagiyev in the detention center.

Alasgar Mammadli also criticized A. Tagiyev.

I've been thinking about something you said a week ago: that we have to prove we're not criminals. How can you say that? A court must be impartial. You're violating the presumption of innocence. If a judge says this, why are we here? It seems you've already made your decision.

The judges considered but rejected the objection, and the trial continued.

Shahin Maharramli, who testified as a witness in the trial. He was a friend of Akif Gurbanov, and that he signed his statement in the investigation under pressure and said:

I didn't write the statement, and I wasn't allowed to read it.

The judge's reading of the investigation statement mentioned that Gurbanov registered the car in his wife's name because he was afraid of grants. The witness denied this, saying it was due to a document problem.

He also confirmed that Gurbanov asked for a loan of 30,000 manats, but stated that borrowing money between friends is normal.

We all ask each other for loans. I asked him too.

The defense reminded the witness of his 30-day sentence and asked why. Shahin Maharramli replied:

They arrested me because I was friends with Akif Gurbanov. The police said so.

The public prosecutor said that no such law existed, but the judge added the statement to the record.

Javid Ramazanov also testified that he gave his statement under pressure, stating:

I wasn't provided a lawyer and was threatened with arrest.

Alya Yagublu had a tense exchange with the judge. Akif Gurbanov and Alasgar Mammadli protested the judge's behavior. Farid Ismayilov also spoke up:

You're showing intolerance for two questions and shouting at us. The pressure in the investigation rooms must be intense.

Alya Yagublu said she knew Akif Gurbanov since he started at Toplum TV:

Akif Gurbanov founded Toplum TV when independent media was struggling. We criticized him and invited him to programs. But he always answered our questions.

At the trial's end, the judge set the next hearing for November 24.

Ten people face charges in the Toplum TV case. Akif Gurbanov, Ruslan Izzetli, Alasgar Mammadli, Mushfig Jabbar, Farid Ismayilov, Ali Zeynal, Ilkin Amrahov and Ramil Babayev were arrested.

Journalist Elmir Abbasov is under police custody, and Toplum TV editor Shahnaz Beylargizi was initially placed under house arrest but is now under police custody.

The charges against those arrested in the Toplum TV case were initially smuggling but later had more charges added. They deny the charges, saying the arrests were politically motivated.

Journalists and activists involved in the ToplumTV case have expressed dissatisfaction with Judge Azer Taghiyev, who is overseeing the case at the Baku Grave Crimes Court. They argue that Judge Taghiyev is biased and exerting pressure on witnesses. Consequently, they protested against Judge A. Taghiyev during the November 3 court session, requesting his removal from the case.

Ruslan Izzetli, a member of the Founding Board of the Third Republic Platform, explained his objection by stating, You are acting like a prosecutor, not a judge. We observed this during the previous court session. You are pressuring witnesses and attempting to manipulate their statements.

Other defendants echoed his objections. Media lawyer Alasgar Mammadli emphasized that Judge A. Tagiyev's conduct contravenes the law, stating, You are distorting the witnesses' words and attributing statements to them that they did not make.

Following a discussion among the panel of judges that included Elnur Nuriyev and Roman Alakbarli, the objection against A. Tagiyev was deemed unconsidered.

Subsequently, witnesses were questioned in court, including historian and political activist Yadigar Sadigli, as well as journalist Naila Yagublu, among others.

During the questioning of witness N. Yagublu, the defendants protested the behavior of Judge A. Tagiyev. In response, the judge removed one of the defendant journalists, Ali Zeynalov, from the courtroom and threatened to proceed with future sessions in his absence.

The trial in the ToplumTV case is scheduled to resume on November 24.

Arrests connected to the ToplumTV case began in March of the preceding year. Initially, seven individuals, including Alasgar Mammadli, and Akif Gurbanov, were arrested on charges of smuggling. While alternative restraint measures were initially applied to journalists Farid Ismayilov and Elmir Abbasov, F. Ismayilov was later arrested in January 2025.

Upon the conclusion of the investigation, the accused faced accusations of smuggling, money laundering, illegal entrepreneurship, tax evasion, and other charges. The articles under which they were charged carry a maximum sentence of 12 years in prison.

All defendants deny these charges, asserting that their arrests were politically motivated.

Since November 2023, more than 30 journalists and public activists in Azerbaijan have been arrested on charges of smuggling.

According to local human rights organizations, approximately 400 political prisoners are currently held in Azerbaijani prisons.

Officials typically affirm that no one in the country is arrested solely for their professional activities or political beliefs. They maintain that those whose names appear on these lists are being held accountable for their actions.