Azerbaijan prosecutor seeks seven years for journalist

The case is being heard behind closed doors at the Baku Court of Grave Crimes. According to Mirkadyrov’s attorney, Fuad Agayev, the prosecutor also asked the court to apply Article 62 of the Criminal Code of Azerbaijan, which carries a more lenient sentence than Article 274, under which Mirkadyrov was initially charged.

Mirkadyrov was arrested in Turkey in April 2014 and immediately extradited to Azerbaijan, where he was taken into custody upon arrival and accused of espionage.

The journalist has been charged by the government with high treason for allegedly transferring sensitive military information to Armenian intelligence. He denies the charge.