BAKU, Azerbaijan, December 23. Million-dollar
smuggling chain has been exposed, and officials held accountable in
Azerbaijan, the Prosecutor's General Office said in a statement,
Trend reports.


According to the statement, the Prosecutor General's Office,
together with relevant state agencies, is taking complex,
systematic, and consistent measures to prevent damage to the
country's economy by individuals, the smuggling of various types of
products into the country, the organization of their illegal sale,
and other similar acts.


The Main Department for Combating Corruption under the
Prosecutor General is continuing its preliminary investigation into
the criminal cases initiated at the State Customs Committee
regarding the illegal actions of officials, military personnel, and
other members of a criminal organization who participated in the
commission of smuggling and abuse of power crimes.


Thus, as a result of investigative measures on the criminal case
on the illegal actions of the Baku Hovsan International Trade Sea
Port Customs Post of the Main Customs Department of the State
Customs Committee for Maritime Transport and Energy Resources,
employees of the "Baku Hovsan International Trade Sea Port" Open
Joint Stock Company and other members of the criminal association,
the de facto head of "Baku Hovsan International Trade Sea Port"
OJSC Ruslan Eyyubov, the general director of the OJSC Rashad
Dashdamirov, the head of the port service Zaur Hashimov, the port
foreman Farrukh Hagverdiyev, the head of the Baku Hovsan Trade Sea
Port Customs Post of the Main Customs Department of the State
Customs Committee for Maritime Transport and Energy Resources Farid
Usubov, inspectors of the mentioned Customs Post Heydar Eyvazli,
Tamerlan Akhundzadeh and Tahir Tahiri, the senior operational
representative of the Operational Department of the Operational
Investigation Department of the mentioned Main Customs Department
Anvar Taghiyev, as well as the transport of tobacco products. It
has been established that Elchin Rustamov, Fariz Maharramov, Firuz
Aliyev, Amil Jabrayilov, Alasgar Ismayilov, Rovshan Tarverdiyev, as
well as others whose identities are being investigated by the
investigation, who carried out the transportation and storage of
tobacco products, worth a total of more than 5.4 million manat
($3.2 million), from the United Arab Emirates and Iran, which
should be marked with excise stamps, were smuggled into the country
by ship from the port without such stamps, by entering into a
criminal association as an organized group.


Based on the collected initial evidence, these individuals were
charged under Articles 206.4 (large-scale smuggling as part of an
organized group), 213-1.2.1, 213-1.2.2, 213-1.2.3 (repeatedly
storing large quantities of goods that should be marked with excise
stamps by a group of persons in advance for sale without such
stamps) and 308.2 (abuse of official authority leading to grave
consequences) of the Criminal Code of Azerbaijan.


In the case, based on the motion of the preliminary
investigation body and the presentation of the prosecutor
conducting the procedural management of the preliminary
investigation, arrest was decided by the court, a non-arrest
preventive measure was chosen for Firuz Aliyev, and an
international search was announced for other individuals, who left
the country to evade the investigation, with arrest in absentia
preventive measure chosen for them.


Moreover, in another criminal case, the preliminary
investigation of which is ongoing in the Main Department for
Combating Corruption under the Prosecutor General, the illegal
actions of "RR Caspi", "Semaye Co", "Semaye Logistic" and other
Limited Liability Companies, as well as officials of the State
Border Service, who participated in the commission of smuggling and
other crimes, were exposed.







The preliminary investigation revealed that the founder and de
facto head of "RR Caspi" LLC Ramin Akhundov, the ship captain of
that LLC Elshan Ahmadov, ship mechanic Elchin Asgarov, ship sailor
Amid Sayilov, Samir Gahramanbayli, who carried out the work of the
LLC, Vusal Sadigov, the head of the 14th coastal control unit of
the 3rd Coastal Control Department of the State Border Service,
Valeh Samadov, the controller of that unit, as well as Elgun
Nazarov, Emin Nazarov, Heydar Mohammad Reza Ali oglu, Amal Azizov,
Abulfat Ismayilzade, Shahin Heydarov, Vugar Ismayilov, who carried
out the transportation and storage of tobacco products by vehicles,
as well as others whose identities are being investigated by the
investigation, entered into a criminal relationship as a group of
individuals who had previously conspired to transport tobacco
products worth more than one million manat ($590,000), which should
have been marked with excise stamps, to Baku by ship without such
stamps. Grounds for smuggling were established in the Alat
settlement of Garadagh district, through an illegally constructed,
unregistered mooring bridge on the shore of the Caspian Sea.


The above-mentioned persons were charged with the following
offences of the Criminal Code of Azerbaijan:


- 206.3.2 (smuggling by a group of persons in advance and by an
official using his official position),


- 213-1.2.1, 213-1.2.3 (storage of goods that should be marked
with excise stamps by a group of persons in advance for sale
without such stamps),


- 341.2.1 and 341.2.3 (abuse of official authority by a group of
persons and with grave consequences)


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