Date of Birth: 22 September 1985
Detained Since: 6 March 2024
Affiliation: Video journalist; former contributor, RFE/RL Baku office; video editor at Toplum TV

Charges:

• Conspiracy to commit illegal entrepreneurship (Art. 192.3.2)

• Conspiracy to commit money laundering (Arts. 193-1.3.1, 193-1.3.2)

• Conspiracy to commit bulk cash smuggling (Art. 206.4)

• Conspiracy to commit tax evasion (Art. 213.2.1)

• Arranging employment of a substantial number of employees without labour contracts (Art. 162-1)

Conviction and Sentence:
Trial stage. No conviction or sentence to date.

Political Prisoner Status:
His detention meets criteria (a) and (e) of PACE Resolution 1900 (2012):

• Violates rights to freedom of expression and association under the ECHR.

• Prosecution is politically motivated and aims to silence his journalistic work.

Summary:
Mushfig Jabbarov is a video journalist who previously collaborated with Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty (RFE/RL) in Baku and later worked as a video editor at Toplum TV, an independent media outlet. He was arrested on 6 March 2024 during coordinated raids on the offices of IDI, Toplum TV, and TRP, as well as staff apartments. Police claimed to discover 123,048.96 AZN in cash, though detainees report the money was planted while they were under police control.

On 8 March 2024, he was charged with conspiracy to commit bulk cash smuggling. In March 2025, charges were expanded to include illegal entrepreneurship, money laundering, tax evasion, and labour violations. He was remanded in custody at Baku Pre-Trial Detention Facility No. 1, where he remains pending trial before the Baku Assize Court.

His prosecution exhibits hallmarks of politically motivated repression:

• Searches and seizures conducted without legal counsel.

• Reliance on undisclosed “operational information” and unsubstantiated evidence.

• Systematic defamation in pro-government media, framing Toplum TV as a “fifth column of Western powers.”

Jabbarov’s case fits the broader 2023–2024 crackdown on civil society and media, echoing earlier cycles of repression condemned by the European Court of Human Rights.

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