Key witness exposes coerced statement, rejects charges against Bahruz Samadov

Writer Samad Shikhi, the key witness in the case against imprisoned Azerbaijani researcher Bahruz Samadov, has come forward to reveal that his statement used against Samadov was fabricated and forcibly extracted under threat by state authorities. The witness has also firmly asserted that Samadov, who faces 15 years in prison for "treason against the state," committed no crime whatsoever.

Shikhi detailed a harrowing ordeal that began with their detention at the airport, which immediately spiraled into a grueling 24-hour interrogation. Held in multiple rooms and questioned relentlessly by different individuals, the witness described being entirely worn out, exhausted, and weakened by the pressure of the environment.

The coercion culminated when an interrogator explicitly told the witness they would be released, but presented a "social media post that had been published directly from the witness's own Facebook account without their consent." The authorities issued a direct threat regarding the fabricated post: "this will not be deleted from here, and if it is deleted, you will be brought back".

The witness confirmed that the official statement taken from them perfectly mirrored this planted post, which contained outright falsehoods. For instance, the coerced statement falsely claimed that Samadov had covered the witness's expenses for an event in Georgia. The witness debunked this, noting that Samadov was simply a student getting by on a scholarship. Addressing why they did not publicly deny the post sooner, the witness admitted to being terrified by the 24-hour detention.

In addition to exposing the forced statement, the witness vehemently defended Samadov's innocence. After being granted the opportunity to review the criminal case file, the witness stated they were completely freed from any doubts about their friend's actions. "I saw no grounds for treason, nothing to justify holding him criminally liable," the witness declared, noting that Samadov's only supposed offense was having "talked and debated with an Armenian".

The witness described Samadov as a "pure" academic whose primary interests were researching, reading, and discussing history—not espionage. Emphasizing his absolute lack of guilt, the witness pointed out that Samadov voluntarily returned to Azerbaijan prior to his arrest despite warnings from friends. Samadov ignored these warnings because he firmly maintained that "he was clean, that there was no basis for his arrest". According to the witness, the academic simply believed the authorities' promises that he would not be targeted, further underscoring his innocence.