The first hearing into case of Dilgam Askerov and Shahbaz Guliyev was chaired by Judge Anatoly Tadevosyan. The hostages lawyers – Erik Baghdasaryan and Arkady Israelyan – have been appointed by the Armenian government.
During the first day of the fake `trial`, identity of the defendants, family status was clarified.
Both defendants said they accept guilt in part. Dilgam Askerov said he does not plead guilty in illegally crossing the border of Azerbaijan and Nagorno-Karabakh in 2005 accompanied by Shahbaz Guliyev and twice in 2007, with persons named Raffi and Vagif, and the second time alone with a plan to visit the grave of his parents. At the same time, he accepted the charge of crossing the border in 2014 with Shahbaz Guliyev and Hasan Hasanov. Askerov did not accept charges of espionage as well as kidnapping and murdering minor Smbat Tsakanyan. Meanwhile, the charge of illegal possession of weapons, money theft, documents and cattle were accepted.
Shahbaz Guliyev also pleaded partially guilt. According to Guliyev, in 2005, “he was not aware of the presence of the border”. In 2014, he crossed the border still being unaware of the border.
“Dilgam said there is no one there, and we believed him,” Guliyev said. He also partially accepted the charges of illegal possession of weapons.
“Weapons were given on the border. And in 2005, I was unarmed,” he said, thus contradicting the previous assertion that he did not know of the existence of the border. Charges of kidnapping a minor were not accepted as well (Guliyev is not charged with murder - ed).
“I gave him bread. I was with them [(associates], saw everything, but did not do anything,” the defendant said.
Fake `trial` on azerbaijani hostages
27 October 2014
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