Two children killed in Azerbaijan police car accident 

Police car crash kills two children in Azerbaijan

In Azerbaijan’s Imishli District, a collision involving a police vehicle claimed the lives of two children and left three others seriously injured. Angered by the tragedy, local residents vandalized the police car. Around ten individuals involved in the incident were detained on charges of hooliganism.

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A police vehicle belonging to the State Traffic Police struck a group of children on the roadside in the city of Imishli on January 18 at 12:30 p.m., following a sudden cut-off by another car, according to the press service of the Ministry of Internal Affairs. The incident resulted in the deaths of two children, three others and the driver were hospitalized.

A criminal case has been launched, and police and prosecutors are investigating the incident.

The Prosecutor General’s Office also confirmed the information. “A criminal case has been initiated under Article 263.3 of the Criminal Code (violation of traffic rules and vehicle operation resulting in the unintentional death of two people), and a preliminary investigation is being conducted by the Imishli District Prosecutor’s Office,” the statement from the oversight agency reads.

According to TƏBİB (the Administration of Regional Medical Units), three children injured in the Imishli accident and the driver of the police vehicle were evacuated to the Imishli Central Hospital with varying degrees of injuries, one of whom is in critical condition.

“Individuals born in 1992 and 2015 have been diagnosed with closed traumatic brain injuries and received emergency medical care. They are currently being treated in the intensive care unit, and their condition is assessed as severe,” stated TƏBİB.

It was reported that outraged residents of the district staged a protest following the incident and overturned the State Traffic Police vehicle involved in the accident.

“A group of individuals has been arrested for committing acts of hooliganism in a public place in the Imishli district,” read a statement from Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs.

The ministry further noted that “in connection with the open criminal case, the detainees have been provided with legal representation, and measures are being taken to ensure an objective investigation in accordance with the law.”

However, the Ministry of Internal Affairs did not disclose the exact number or identities of those detained. A photo released by the ministry shows nine individuals in custody.

“I demand that the person who killed my daughter is held accountable,” said Taleh Mammadov, the father of Ayan Mammadova, one of the children killed in the accident.

Taleh Mammadov told Radio Liberty that internet access in the district was cut off until the children’s bodies were handed over to their families:

“The funerals took place at night. We didn’t wait until morning; we buried the child that same night. My daughter was such a good student that all her teachers were proud of her. She used to say, ‘Dad, I’m going to become a doctor.’ But she broke me and left forever.

Everyone is trying to comfort me, but my child lies beneath the dark soil. I only want one thing: for the person responsible to be punished. Representatives from various agencies came to see us and promised that those responsible would be held accountable.”