Head of "Azel.TV" detained in Azerbaijan

Employees of the Chief Department for Combating Corruption under the General Prosecutor's Office (GPO) of Azerbaijan have searched the apartment of Afghan Sadygov, the head of the online edition "Azel.TV"; he was detained, his wife and advocate have informed.

Afghan Sadygov left home at about 3 p.m. local time on May 13, after which any contacts with him were lost, his wife, Sevindj Sadygova, has stated.

"Toward the evening, employees of the above Department came to us with a search warrant; they turned the whole apartment upside down. They were looking for something. They asked me about some Afghan's electronic disks, but he kept nothing; he posted everything that he filmed and recorded on the website and in social networks. Ultimately, they seized my phone and computer and left," Ms Sadygova told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

She believes that her husband is persecuted for his journalistic activities and statements in social networks. "It's not for the first time that Afghan is arrested. He has always been persecuted for exposing officials. And this time he is a victim of someone's order," the wife is sure.

Elchin Sadygov, an advocate, said that Afghan's detention was confirmed by the above Department of the GPO. "However, they failed to tell me what exactly he is charged with," the advocate told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on May 14, 2020 at 10:07 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.