Shahlar Novruzov, a prominent member of Russia’s Azerbaijani community in the Kuban region, has become the latest Azerbaijani figure to be detained in Russia amidst souring relations.
Novruzov was remanded to pre-trial detention for 26 days on Monday, according to Russian media outlet Ura.ru.
‘Novruzov, the director of Cafe Stary Baku and Dar Frut, was detained on charges of attempted fraud with real estate worth ₽919 million ($11 million)’, Ura.ru wrote.
The Russian media outlet Kommersant wrote that Novruzov’s lawyer, Aleksei Abramov, asked the court to soften Novruzov’s preventive measure.
‘The defendant is 60 years old, has a permanent place of residence in Krasnodar, has not previously been prosecuted, has assisted with participants of the Special Military Operation [Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine], and has been awarded the “For Civil Courage” medal’, Abramov said.
However, the judge rejected Abramov’s appeal and claimed that ‘Novruzov could abscond’ and ‘continue to engage’ in criminal activity.
Starting in June, Russia has launched several criminal cases against Azerbaijani diaspora members.
The death of two ethnic Azerbaijanis, brothers Ziyaddin and Huseyn Safarov, as a result of a raid by Russian law enforcement agencies in Yekaterinburg, led to an escalation of relations between Azerbaijan and Russia.
Aytan Farhadova
Following this, Baku cancelled a number of Russia-related events and raided the offices of Sputnik-Azerbaijan as relations seemed to plunge to a new low.
Aytan Farhadova
