Baku Appeal Court heard appeals filed against Khatai District Court’s decision refusing to replace the measure of pretrial detention with house arrest or bail for youth activists Giyas Ibrahimov and Bayram Mammadov. The youth activists attended the hearing which was held behind closed doors, their lawyer Elchin Sadigov told the Institute for Reporters’ Freedom and Safety (IRFS).
Opposition NIDA Civic Movement members Giyas Ibrahimov and Bayram Mammadov were arrested on May 10, 2016. Both activists are charged were charged under Articles 234.4.1 (illegal manufacturing, purchase, storage, transportation, transfer or selling of narcotics, psychotropic substances or their precursors – on preliminary arrangement by a group of persons or by an organized group) and 234.4.3 (- in a large amount) of Criminal Code. Bayram Mammadov and Giyas Ibrahimov were ordered detained for 4 months by Khatai District Court’s decision of May 12, 2016.
Youth activist Giyas Ibrahimov had written “Happy Slave Holiday” and “fuck the system” on the late Azerbaijani president Heydar Aliyev’s statue facing the Central Bank near the 28-May metro station, and Bayram Mammadov had taken a photo of the slogans on the statue. The youths were subjected to torture during interrogation at the police office.
According to Elchin Sadigov, Baku Appeal Court chaired by the judge Mirzali Abbasov examined and dismissed the appeal filed against Khatai District Court’s decision dated May 20 on refusal of the petition to replace the measure of remand in custody with house arrest or bail for Giyas Ibrahimov.
“After the hearing on Giyas’ appeal, Baku Appeal Court presided over by the judge Amir Bayramov heard the appeal filed against Khatai District Court’s decision dated May 20 on refusal of the petition to replace the measure of remand in custody with house arrest or bail for Bayram Mammadov. This appeal was also rejected. As we have already exhausted the domestic remedies regarding the pretrial detention decision, we are now going to appeal to the European Court of Human Right,” Sadigov added.
The lawyer also said that Giyas Ibrahimov and Bayram Mammadov had undergone forensic examination after torture complaints, and they provided detailed information about the torture to the expert who examined them.