BAKU, Azerbaijan, June 12. An Azerbaijani
appeals court has reduced the prison sentence of Anass Derraz, vice
president of French utility company SAUR, from 12 years to nine
years.
The Baku Court of Appeals partially granted Derraz's appeal and
amended a previous ruling issued by the Baku Court on Grave
Crimes.
According to prosecutors, Derraz and Alexandre Benalla, the
former head of security for the French presidency, were accused of
soliciting large bribes and engaging in other criminal activities
in connection with efforts to lift international sanctions on
assets linked to Russian businessman Farhad Akhmedov.
The indictment alleges that the two men sought payments from
Akhmedov in exchange for facilitating the release of his luxury
yacht, Luna, from sanctions-related restrictions and enabling it to
operate in international waters.
Prosecutors also said the defendants promised to help shield
Akhmedov from international sanctions.
According to the case materials, the parties reached an
agreement involving a total of $6.14 million in alleged bribe
payments.
The appeals court's decision reduced Derraz's sentence but left
the conviction otherwise unchanged.
