The trial regarding the criminal case against Ceyhun Salmanov, the head of "Qurtuluş" Rehabilitation Center, and two other employees of the center, who are accused of intentionally inflicting minor harm to health, kidnapping, and torture, has been held.
According to Medianews.az, the hearing took place at the Sumqayıt City Court under the chairmanship of Judge Farid Nasimiyev, where victims and witnesses gave testimonies.
The victim, Raqif Babayev, stated in his testimony that his parents applied for him to receive treatment at the rehabilitation center:
"I live in Mingachevir city. My parents applied to that rehabilitation center. I was suffering from casino-gambling addiction. They told me at the rehabilitation center that I would stay here for 6 months. I wanted to leave. There, I swallowed foreign objects - items. I did this as a form of protest. Because of this, the accused persons beat me. Ceyhun Salmanov was not among the beaters. I sustained serious injuries to my face and ear areas because of it. Additionally, as a sign of protest, I went on a hunger strike. I stayed there for 6-7 hours. The police came because of that. I had told my parents that I did not want to stay at the rehabilitation center. While there, I was taken out to the courtyard under supervision. I have no complaints regarding the accused persons."
The victim's mother gave testimony as a witness. She stated that her son suffered from casino and gambling addiction:
"I found information about this rehabilitation center on the 'TikTok' social platform. I applied to the center and about three employees came and took my son at 3 AM. At first, my son was unhappy. Then he voluntarily agreed. I had to pay 1000 manats per month to the center. I had transferred the money to a card account. I have no complaints."
Subsequently, the famous violinist Ramil Hasanov was questioned as a victim. He said that he was a drug user:
"There were three children in the family. I reached out to an acquaintance named Qurban, who brought me to the rehabilitation center. Initially, I was in the 2nd building, later I was moved to the 1st building. I complained that I was bored and restless. I met another victim there as well. When the prosecution officers came, I had already stated that I wanted to leave from there. I stayed in the center for about 2 months. I could not tolerate the strict discipline there. There was no violence against me there. My friends took me there and made the payments. When I came there, I had signed a voluntary consent. Many were rehabilitated there. I myself stayed there for 2 months and the result was positive. I have no complaints about the accused persons. I was complaining only because I wanted to leave the first time."
The next court session is scheduled for July 1.
It should be recalled that a criminal case was initiated at the Sumqayıt City Prosecutor's Office and a preliminary investigation was launched regarding irregularities at the "Qurtuluş Rehabilitation Center" LLC located in Sumqayıt city. Based on initial investigative measures, the director of the said LLC, Ceyhun Salmanov, together with Elshad Maharramov, Natig Aliyev, and others unknown to the investigation, knowingly acting in concert, brought more than 7 individuals to the center located in the village of Corat in Sumqayıt city (residential house) by using force and deception at different times, unlawfully depriving them of liberty against their will, and during their captivity deprived these individuals of the opportunity to contact relatives, including mobile phone and other communication means, subjected them to various forms of physical and psychological torture, and there is reasonable suspicion that they caused bodily harm to the health of several detainees. All three persons were charged as accused and, based on the prosecutor's submission, pre-trial detention was chosen as a preventive measure by the decision of the Sumqayıt City Court.
Based on the collected evidence, Ceyhun Salmanov, Elshad Maharramov, and Natig Aliyev have been charged under Articles 145.2.1 and 145.2.4 of the Criminal Code (unlawful deprivation of liberty of two or more persons by a group of persons acting in concert). oxu.az