Azerbaijan detains journalist Afgan Sadygov after extortion case reopened

Afgan Sadygov

An Azerbaijani court has ordered the pre-trial detention of independent journalist Afgan Sadygov after reopening an extortion case that prosecutors had previously closed in April.

The Binagadi District Court in Baku ruled that Mr Sadygov, the editor-in-chief of the online news outlet Azel TV, must be held in custody until 30 July.

His lawyer, Nemat Karimli, said the decision followed a successful appeal by alleged victims to overturn a previous ruling by the Prosecutor General's Office to terminate the criminal investigation.

The court upheld the appeal, annulled the decision to close the case, and sent it back for reinvestigation," Mr Karimli said.

Mr Sadygov faces charges of group extortion to obtain a significant amount of property, which carry a potential prison sentence of five to 10 years. He has strongly denied the allegations, maintaining they are politically motivated and designed to silence his journalistic work.

The decision marks the latest escalation in a complex legal saga spanning both Azerbaijan and neighbouring Georgia.

In April, Mr Sadygov was abruptly deported from Georgia, where he had been living in exile with his family since December 2023.

Georgian authorities claimed he was deported and fined 2,000 lari (£600) for allegedly insulting police officers. However, his legal defence team described the expulsion as a coordinated "special operation" between the Azerbaijani and Georgian governments.

The deportation went ahead despite a temporary measure issued by the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) in January 2025, which had blocked his formal extradition to Azerbaijan over safety concerns.

The international human rights group Human Rights Watch (HRW) condemned the deportation, stating that Georgian authorities had exposed the journalist to a high risk of "politically motivated prosecution and ill-treatment".

Shortly after his return to Azerbaijan, Mr Sadygov stated he had been barred from leaving the country, despite being issued a passport.

Although the Prosecutor General's Office terminated my case on 1 April, border officials told me that the interior ministry and prosecutors have placed a travel ban on me," he said in a video statement on 26 May.

The Prosecutor General's Office and the Binagadi District Court did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the latest detention order.