12:50

Investigative measures are being carried out in connection with criminal acts directed against state power.

As a result of the comprehensive measures taken by the State Security Service to prevent the provocative and disruptive activities of foreign special service agencies against the security and national interests of Azerbaijan, reasonable suspicions have arisen that nationals of the Republic of Azerbaijan – Mehdiyev Ramiz Anvar oglu, Abbasov Abbas Aydin oglu, Karimli Ali Amirhuseyn oglu and others – have committed acts aimed at the forcible seizure of state power and the forcible change of the constitutional state structure.

According to the indictment filed against the accused in the criminal case, Abbasov Abbas Aydin oglu and Ibrahimbeyov Rustam Mammad Ibrahim oglu, as co-founders and leaders of an organisation created by special service agencies of a foreign country to interfere with political processes in Azerbaijan and registered in a foreign country on 4 July 2012 under the name “Union of Russian Azerbaijani Organizations”, also referred to as the “Union of Billionaires”, as well as Mehdiyev Ramiz Anvar oglu, the chairman of the Azerbaijan Popular Front Party (APFP) Karimli Ali Amirhuseyn oglu, party members Fuad Ali oglu Gahramanli, Ganimat Salim oglu Zayidov and others, conspired to forcibly seize state power and forcibly change the current constitutional state structure.

Thus, after the creation of an organisation called the “National Council of Democratic Forces” (National Council), which nominated Rustam Ibrahimbeyov, a foreign national, as a candidate in the presidential election of the Republic of Azerbaijan in 2013, they acted with the financial assistance and other forms of organisational support of foreign special service agencies to commit mass riots, disobey lawful demands of government representatives, and disrupt public order, transport, enterprises, departments and organisations in order to forcibly seize state power. They also directed funds amounting to 933,828.40 manats, received through APFP member Ibrahim Mammad Aziz oglu and others, as well as funds received from Ramiz Mehdiyev and Abbas Abbasov, to attract people from various regions of the republic to commit the aforementioned acts.

According to the technical evidence attached to the materials of the criminal case, members of the organisation called the “Billionaires’ Union” were instructed to send Azerbaijani nationals, who were working under their subordination or otherwise under their patronage in a foreign country during the 2013 presidential election, to Azerbaijan in order to summon their relatives and close friends to ensure that they were used in rallies and mass riots in accordance with the instructions of foreign special service agencies.

It was revealed that, as a result of prior negotiations and in accordance with the request of authorised persons of the relevant foreign state, in a secret letter addressed by the “National Council” to the leadership of that foreign state in 2013, there was a request to support the activities of the “Council” and a proposal to put pressure on the Azerbaijani state to implement the “reforms” carried out in that country in Azerbaijan as well.

According to the aforementioned accusation, since the beginning of 2013 Ganimat Zayidov has been secretly communicating and negotiating with representatives of foreign special service agencies on behalf of Ali Karimli, appealing for the use of the broad organisational and special capabilities of foreign special service agencies in bringing him to power in the Republic of Azerbaijan, promising in return, and listing specific details, that the strategic interests of the foreign state in Azerbaijan would be ensured, and the parties also agreed that, if Ali Karimli came to power, the Republic of Azerbaijan would gradually become a full member of the Collective Security Treaty Organization.

At the same time, according to the indictment, Ali Karimli, continuing his criminal acts in accordance with the general agreement reached in advance with the aforementioned individuals, during the Azerbaijani citizens’ march in Baku on the night of 14–15 July 2020 in support of the army and against the aggressive war waged by Armenia in the Karabakh region of Azerbaijan, instructed Fuad Gahramanli and others to form small groups with party representatives, join the marchers and then create a chaotic situation by replacing patriotic slogans with provocative calls, and thus, by taking advantage of the situation and controlling the crowd, seize the administrative buildings of the Milli Majlis of the Republic of Azerbaijan and the “Azerbaijan Television and Radio Broadcasting” CJSC, including announcing the seizure of power through the mass media.

In addition, Ramiz Mehdiyev submitted written material prepared in August–September 2025, in a foreign language, under the title “Proposals on the Restructuring of the State Administration System”, which contained secret plans and directions of action against state power, to Ali Karimli on 27 September 2025 through his assistant Amirov Eldar Gurban oglu and others in order to jointly agree on the issues stipulated in that document. On 3 October 2025, he sent the final edited copy of the article through employees of the “Sharg-Garb” OJSC, which he effectively owned, to senior officials of the special service agencies of the foreign state with whom he had previously personally contacted, and this transmission was technically registered.

By these actions, Ramiz Mehdiyev took actions aimed at seizing state power with the help of foreign special service agencies and forcibly changing the constitutional structure, and committed treason by assisting representatives of a foreign state contrary to the interests of the state security of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

In addition, Ramiz Mehdiyev legalised more than 17,000,000 manats of criminally obtained funds until 13 October 2025.

For their participation in the listed criminal acts, Abbas Abbasov, Ali Karimli, Fuad Gahramanli, Mammad Ibrahim and Ganimat Zayidov have been held responsible as accused persons under Article 278.1 (actions aimed at the forcible seizure or forcible retention of power, as well as forcible change of the constitutional structure of the state), Eldar Amirov under Articles 32.5 and 278.1 (assistance to actions aimed at the forcible seizure or forcible retention of power, as well as forcible change of the constitutional structure of the state), and Ramiz Mehdiyev under Articles 193-1.3.2 (legalisation of a large amount of property obtained through crime), 274 (treason) and 278.1 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan.

Abbas Abbasov, Fuad Gahramanli and Ganimat Zayidov were declared wanted, and the court chose a preventive measure of arrest in absentia because they are currently outside the territory of the Republic of Azerbaijan and hiding from the investigation.

Investigations into the criminal case are continuing.