Press release
“The settlement involved the forfeiture and sale of two properties. As part of the settlement, some of the proceeds of the sale of these properties will be returned to our client.
The settlement involved no finding of fact by the Court about our client’s knowledge or state of mind, still less involvement, in relation to these properties.
Our client took the decision to settle the proceedings because it proved impossible to defend them. Throughout the course of the UK proceedings, Mrs Hajiyev’s husband, Mr Jahangir Hajiyev, who is detained in Azerbaijan, held information potentially crucial to the case. However, for the duration of the UK case, the Azerbaijani authorities deliberately denied Mrs Hajiyeva and her UK lawyers access to Mr Hajiyev in prison in Azerbaijan. In addition, the Azerbaijani authorities prevented Mr Hajiyev’s Azerbaijani lawyers from taking to him documents specifying the allegations made by the NCA in order for Mr Hajiyev to review and comment. Finally, as a result of attempts to take the papers to Mr Hajiyev in prison to enable him to review them, he was denied medical treatment and food which lead to two applications to the European Court of Human Rights for urgent relief under Rule 39. Mr Hajiyev’s Azerbaijani lawyers and family continue to fight for his fair treatment and release and await the determination of the remaining cases before the ECHR.
Our client and her family are happy to now be able to move on with their lives.”