04.12.2017

Well-known prisoner in Azerbaijan commits suicide

Former police colonel Haji Mammadov has committed suicide in a prison hospital in Baku.

According to preliminary reports, Haji Mammadov hanged himself in the hospital ward using a bedsheet.

Haji Mammadov worked as a senior operative in the Criminal Investigation Department of Azerbaijan’s Ministry of Internal Affairs. Mammadov and 26 others were detained after operation Black Belt conducted by the Ministry of National Security in March 2005. As leader of the criminal group, Mammadov was charged with 80 articles of the criminal code, including murder, kidnapping and blackmail. He, along with seven other members of the group, was sentenced to life imprisonment.

More than a year and a half ago, Mammadov was transferred to a specialized prison hospital for tuberculosis treatment. He was later diagnosed with lung cancer.

Prosecutors are currently carrying out an investigation at the scene of the incident. A criminal case was initiated under Article 125 (incitement to suicide) as the circumstances and causes surrounding his suicide are not clear yet.

Haji’s sister, Arifa Mammadov, told Meydan.tv that she spoke with her brother just a week before the incident, and that he said his condition was normal and that he was recovering.

Two years ago, Mammadov appealed to President Ilham Aliyev with a letter asking him to open a new investigation. As Arifa Mammadov reported, the former Minister of National Security, Eldar Mahmudov, exerted pressure on her brother, and forbade him to reveal important aspects of the case during the trial. But the site minval.az wrote that after Makhmudov was removed from his post, and the Ministry of National Security was disbanded, that Mammadov hoped the case would be reviewed.

Mammadov apparently wanted to meet with the head of the Committee Against Torture, Elchin Behbudov in order to tell him something ‘very important’, but the human rights defender died before Mammadov got the chance.

Forensic experts conducted an examination at the scene of the incident. During the examination of the deceased’s chambers, a note was found in which he asked for forgiveness from relatives and employees of the institution where he was held, and that he had no hard feelings towards anyone.

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