AZERBAIJAN: HAJI MAMMADOV KIDNAPPING RING TRIAL

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 BAKU 001124 SIPDIS SIPDIS E.O. 12958: DECL: 08/01/2016 TAGS: PGOV PREL PHUM KDEM SOCI KCOR KCRM KJUS AJ SUBJECT: AZERBAIJAN: HAJI MAMMADOV KIDNAPPING RING TRIAL BEGINS WITH SENSATIONAL ACCUSATIONS Classified By: DEPUTY CHEIF OF MISSION JASON P. HYLAND PER 1.4(B,D) ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: The trial of former Chief of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) Criminal Investigation Division Haji Mammadov and his 26-member gang began on July 20. The group is charged under 50 articles of the Criminal Code, including kidnapping and manslaughter. Mammadov has plead guilty to all charges but one. In a statement that shocked the public, Mammadov confessed that his group had carried out the May 2005 murder of opposition journalist Elmar Huseynov, and claimed that the assassination had been ordered by detained former Minister of Economic Development, Farhad Aliyev. Mammadov's statement was carried widely in the press; however, the Prosecutor General's office has stated publicly that it doubts Mammadov's claims. Members of the Elmar Huseynov Memorial Fund have raised concerns about the validity of the testimony. Echoing the public skepticism, Aliyev's attorney told Emboff that he does not believe that Aliyev ordered the killing, and alleged that Ministry of National Security authorities are pinning this on Aliyev because they are unable to find evidence of the attempted coup d'tat with which he is charged. Aliyev also refuted Mammadov's claims in a statement issued through his lawyer. END SUMMARY MAMMADOV CONFESSES TO KILLINGS -------------- ¶2. (U) The trial of the former Chief of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) Criminal Investigation Division Haji Mammadov and his 26-member murder, kidnapping and extortion gang began on July 20. Mammadov and his group were arrested in March 2005 after a Ministry of National Security (MNS) raid on the hideout where Mammadov was holding captive the wife of the chairman of the International Bank of Azerbaijan. The gang has been charged under 50 articles of the Azerbaijani Criminal Code, including kidnapping and manslaughter. During the trial, 26 accused persons, 45 victims, and 191 witnesses will testify, and lawyers expect the trial to last more than a year. Mammadov has plead guilty to all charges but one - the robbery of a woman's home on February 14, 1996. Most of the accused have accepted partial blame for the charges, but ten, including Mammadov's nephew, maintain that they have not committed any crimes at all. The next session of the trial will be held on August 4. ¶3. (U) Poloff observed the July 25 court session, during which Mammadov took the stand. He confessed that his group killed Mehman Samadov and Novruz Ismayilov, who had been involved in obtaining fake documents and stolen cell phones for the group. According to his testimony, Mammadov had not been sure that the men were trustworthy, and killed them to prevent an information leak. Noting that there were 26 accused, Mammadov said that there were two other guilty individuals that are "walking free," and that the investigators responsible for the case know who they are. AND MUCH MORE -------------- ¶4. (U) In a statement that has shocked the public, Mammadov confessed that his group was responsible for the May 2005 murder of prominent opposition journalist Elmar Huseynov. He further claimed that the murder had been ordered by detained former Minister of Economic Development, Farhad Aliyev. (Note: Aliyev has been in detention since October 2005 on charges of attempting a coup d'tat) Mammadov said that he was not interested in lying or making shocking statements to "cause a show," and said that he repented for all of the crimes he had committed, with the exception of the murder of Azer Ismayilov, Chief of the MIA Drug Enforcement Department. He also said that he had attempted suicide on March 24, but that MNS authorities had saved his life. Stating that he was tired and that there would be plenty of time later to discuss the details, Mammadov declined to continue his testimony. ¶5. (U) Immediately after the court session ended, Mammadov's statement about the murder of Elmar Huseynov made a significant splash in the press. Reports of the confession were carried widely, and repeated widely on the pro-GOAJ television stations, although the Prosecutor General's office stated in the press that it doubts Mammadov's claims. On July 26, the Elmar Huseynov Memorial Fund held a press conference at which its representatives raised concerns about the safety of both Mammadov and Aliyev, and called on the Office of the Ombudsman and on the International Committed of the Red Cross (ICRC) to ensure that they are being treated humanely. There was also serious discussion at the press conference of the validity of Mammadov's testimony, on which the consensus was BAKU 00001124 002 OF 002 that there is not factual information to back Mammadov's claims. ¶6. (SBU) Elton Guliyev, Farhad Aliyev's lawyer (who also represents Mammadov's nephew and Huseynov's widow),told Emboff he does not believe that Aliyev ordered Huseynov's murder. Guliyev said he believes that Ministry of National Security authorities are pinning this on Aliyev because they are unable to find evidence of the attempted coup d'tat with which he is charged. Publicly, Guliyev said that Haji Mammadov's statement is ridiculous, and an attempt to exert pressure on the detained former minister. Echoing the general sentiment of civil society, Guliyev also said that nobody will be able to write off Huseynov's murder, and that Mammadov is trying to "improve his situation" by making such claims. In a statement issued through Guliyev, Aliyev also refuted Mammadov's claims. ¶7. (C) Arif Hajiyev, Editor of Gun Seher newspaper and Chairman of the New Generation Journalists' Union (one of the most professional and independent journalists in Azerbaijan), dismissed the confession as fraudulent in a meeting with PAO. He added, however, that there might be a connection between the kidnapping ring and Huseynov's murder, but almost certainly no connection to the jailed Aliyev. (Comment: While most commentators believe the accusation to be spurious, it is worth noting that in the immediate aftermath of Huseynov's murder in 2005, some members of the press alleged that Farhad Aliyev or his brother Rafig Aliyev, also detained on coup-plotting charges since October 2005 was involved; no evidence has come to public light to support that claim in the intervening time until Mammadov's testimony.) DERSE