19 July 2017, 17:42
Alexander Lapshin repents of his trips to Nagorno-Karabakh
Today, the Baku Court for Grave Crimes has held the final hearing in the case against blogger Alexander Lapshin. In his final speech, Alexander Lapshin has reminded the court that he did not agree with the charges, but expressed his remorse for his trips to Nagorno-Karabakh.
In turn, in his final speech, Eduard Chernin, an advocate of Alexander Lapshin, has requested the court to acquit the blogger. The defender called the charges brought against Alexander Lapshin groundless.
"In his articles, Alexander Lapshin did not call for violation of the territorial integrity of Azerbaijan, and experts could not prove the opposite on the basis of his records," said Eduard Chernin as quoted by the "1news.az".
Mr Lapshin is a citizen of the Russian Federation, Ukraine and Israel. Azerbaijan accuses him of open appeals against the state and illegal border crossing. He faces up to 8 years in prison.
In his final speech, Alexander Lapshin himself has expressed his deep regret at the moral harm that his publications inflicted on Azerbaijani citizens.
"In front of the Azerbaijani people, my fault is only moral and by no means in the legal plane. Under no circumstances did I enter into a criminal relationship with the Armenian authorities. I regret what I did and repent that by going to Karabakh, I brought inflicted sufferings to its residents experiencing the hardships of the occupation," the "Sputnik-Azerbaijan" quotes the defendant as saying.
The verdict to the blogger will be pronounced on July 20.
Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.
