details added (first version posted at 13:45)
Baku, Azerbaijan, July 31
Trend:
Human rights activist Leyla Yunusova and her husband Arif Yunusov are accused of secret collaboration with some citizens to coordinate with representatives of Armenian special services, according to the joint information disseminated by the Azerbaijani Prosecutor General's Office and the Ministry of National Security.
"Leyla Yunusova and Arif Yunusov established relations among some Azerbaijani citizens, whose names were not disclosed, and the representatives of the Armenian special services to bring them to the secret activity," according to the statement. "They performed their task in gathering information for using it against Azerbaijan, including the current socio-political situation in the country, as well as in the fields of industry, energy, military-technical support, propaganda of the need to recognize the independence of the far-fetched "Nagorno-Karabakh regime" in exchange for the liberation of the occupied territories."
Earlier, it was reported that Azerbaijani citizen Rauf Mirkadirov suspected of high treason and espionage, namely, deliberate assistance to the representatives of the Armenian special services was arrested on April 19, 2014. The preliminary investigation on the filed criminal case is underway.
He was prosecuted under Article 274 of the Criminal Code of the Azerbaijan Republic (high treason) on April 21. A preventive measure in the form of arrest was chosen against Mirkadirov upon the decision of the Nasimi district court, according to the report.
Human rights activist Leyla Yunusova and her husband Arif Yunusov were arrested by law enforcement bodies of Azerbaijan on Wednesday. They were charged with high treason, Yunusova's lawyer Javad Javadov told Trend.
"Leyla Yunusova is charged under four articles of the Criminal Code of the Azerbaijan Republic - 274 (high treason), 178 (fraud), 213 (tax evasion), 192 (illegal business), Arif Yunusov charged under two articles of the Criminal Code - 274 (high treason) and 178 (fraud)," he said.
"Arif Yunusov gave a written undertaking not to leave a place," the lawyer added. "Leyla Yunusova was taken to the Nasimi District Court of Baku for a preventive measure in the form of arrest."
Human rights activist Leyla Yunusova and her husband Arif Yunusov were repeatedly invited as witnesses to testify in a criminal case, considered in the Heinous Crime Investigation Department of the Prosecutor General's Office of Azerbaijan. But they deliberately did not appear to testify, the Prosecutor General's Office reported earlier.
Leyla Yunusova with her husband Arif Yunusov intended to leave the country on April 28, trying to evade investigation. This attempt was prevented.