The court proceedings on the criminal case against Ruben Vardanyan, an Armenian citizen accused under the articles of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan related to crimes against peace and humanity, war crimes, as well as terrorism and financing of terrorism, and other serious crimes, continued on December 16.
"Report" reports that at the Baku Military Court, an open court session was held under the chairmanship of judge Zeynal Agayev, with members Anar Rzayev and Jamal Ramazanov, and reserve judge Gunel Samedova. The accused was provided with an interpreter in the language he understood, i.e., Russian, as well as a state-appointed lawyer for his defense.
Judge Zeynal Agayev introduced the court panel to the victims and the legal heirs of the victims, the prosecutors defending the state prosecution, interpreters, and others attending the process for the first time, and explained their rights and duties as prescribed by the legislation.
Afterward, Ruben Vardanyan’s defense lawyer Emil Babishov submitted two motions.
He stated that during the court session held on September 16, the accused Ruben Vardanyan, whose rights were protected, submitted several motions. One of these motions was to ensure the participation and interrogation in court of a representative of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) as a witness. Emil Babishov noted that, according to the defense’s position, the presence of the representative of this organization in court as a witness is necessary. Specifically, according to the accused, during the preliminary investigation as well as throughout the court investigation period, representatives of the ICRC had visited the place where Ruben Vardanyan was temporarily detained at various times and met with him. They assisted with the provision of food and clothing, as well as with establishing contact with family members.
The lawyer stated that based on the accused’s position, the main purpose of ensuring the ICRC representative's participation in the court is to clarify his status in the criminal process. Therefore, assistance is requested to enable the representative of the ICRC to participate in court as a witness.
The accused Ruben Vardanyan also stated that he supports the motion submitted by his defense lawyer.
Responding to the motion, the Chief Prosecutor’s Senior Assistant Vusal Aliyev recalled that Ruben Vardanyan currently holds the status of accused in the criminal case under consideration in court. He emphasized that Ruben Vardanyan has been involved as an accused person in accordance with the Criminal Procedure Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan and charged.
Additionally, his rights have been explained and he has been provided with notifications, and he was interrogated as an accused during the preliminary investigation. Throughout the court proceedings, which have been ongoing for nearly a year, the accused has exercised his rights, defended his rights, and when submitting motions, he referred several times to Article 91 of the Criminal Procedure Code. By exercising his right as an accused, he refused to give testimony during the court hearing.
When necessary, as an accused, he questions victims and witnesses.
The prosecution believes that Ruben Vardanyan himself understands and comprehends his procedural status as an accused in the criminal case.
In the given case, how the testimony of any international organization’s representative in court could clarify or define the person’s status is naturally uncertain. On the other hand, the representative of an international organization does not determine anyone’s status during the court process.
Considering the above, the prosecutor defending the state prosecution asked the court to deny the motion.
After listening to the parties, the court held a deliberation on the spot and made a decision.
According to the decision, the motion was denied. When substantiating the decision, presiding judge Zeynal Agayev stated that the submitted motion was irrelevant to the case under review, had no evidentiary significance, and therefore was rejected. He added that the court is judging whether the person is guilty or not, and what an international organization’s representative might say regarding this matter has no importance for the court.
Then, lawyer Emil Babishov submitted a second motion to the court. He stated that the case materials contain protocols and disks with video materials related to the inspection of the office used by the accused Ruben Vardanyan and his residence. According to the defense’s position, since some facts shown in the videos recorded during the relevant investigative actions require clarification, the investigator should be brought to court and interrogated as a witness.
The accused Ruben Vardanyan stated that he supports the motion.
Responding to the motion, Chief Prosecutor’s Senior Assistant Vusal Aliyev said the defense's motion is groundless, justifying his position by noting that Article 95 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan establishes specific grounds for interrogating the investigator who has exercised his powers in relation to the criminal case. No such grounds have been identified in the current court hearing on the case. The prosecution believes there is no necessity for interrogating the investigator as a witness in the case, and the defense has not sufficiently justified its position.
Therefore, the denial of the motion was requested.
The court listened to the parties' opinions and made a decision. According to the decision, the motion was denied. When justifying the decision, it was emphasized that Article 95 of the Criminal Procedure Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan specifies persons who cannot be interrogated as witnesses, and the investigator falls under those persons.
After that, presiding judge Zeynal Agayev inquired the parties' opinions on the completion of the court investigation.
The parties stated that they do not object to the completion of the court investigation and the commencement of closing statements.
Prosecutors defending the state prosecution requested time from the court to prepare their statements.
The next court session was scheduled for December 18.
Recall that Ruben Vardanyan is charged under Articles 100.1, 100.2 (planning, preparing, initiating, and waging an aggressive war), 107 (deportation and forced displacement of the population), 109 (persecution), 110 (forcible disappearance of persons), 112 (deprivation of liberty contrary to international legal norms), 113 (torture), 114.1 (mercenarism), 115.2 (violation of the laws and customs of war), 116.0.1, 116.0.2, 116.0.10, 116.0.11, 116.0.16, 116.0.18 (violation of international humanitarian law during armed conflict), 120.2.1, 120.2.3, 120.2.4, 120.2.7, 120.2.11, 120.2.12 (intentional murder), 29,120.2.1, 29,120.2.3, 29,120.2.4, 29,120.2.7, 29,120.2.11, 29,120.2.12 (attempted intentional murder), 192.3.1 (illegal entrepreneurship), 214.2.1, 214.2.3, 214.2.4 (terrorism), 214-1 (financing terrorism), 218.1, 218.2 (creation of a criminal organization), 228.3 (illegal acquisition, transfer, sale, storage, carrying and transportation of firearms, their components, ammunition, explosives, and devices), 270-1.2, 270-1.4 (acts threatening aviation safety), 278.1 (forcible seizure or retention of power, forcible change of the constitutional structure of the state), 279.1, 279.2, 279.3 (formation of illegal armed groups or formations as prescribed by legislation) and 318.2 (illegal crossing of the state border of the Republic of Azerbaijan) of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
