IOLR

On June 4, the Ministry of Justice extradited another individual to Azerbaijan, who had been placed on the international wanted list by the Interpol National Central Bureau in our country and whose whereabouts were established in the United Arab Emirates (UAE).

According to Oxu.Az, citing the Ministry of Justice, Azerbaijani citizen Polad Babayev was located and arrested in the UAE. He is accused of defrauding a group of citizens under the pretext of awarding disability pensions or employment, abusing their trust, and receiving funds from them for these purposes, causing significant material damage to the victims starting in 2022 (Articles 178.2.1 and 178.2.4 of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Azerbaijan).

Following the submission of the necessary documents in accordance with international procedures and negotiations, an agreement was reached to extradite P. Babayev to Azerbaijan.

He was brought to our country from Dubai by responsible officials from the Ministry of Justice’s Main Directorate for International Cooperation and the Penitentiary Service and, based on a court order for his arrest, was placed in the appropriate pretrial detention facility.

The Main Directorate for Combating Cybercrime of the Ministry of Internal Affairs received complaints from citizens reporting the theft of funds from bank cards through fake accounts of banks and credit institutions on social media.

According to Oxu.Az, citing the Ministry of Internal Affairs, as a result of operational and technical measures conducted by the cyber police, two more suspects in the crimes were identified and detained: 20-year-old Jafar Bayramzade and 23-year-old Eynulla Mailov.

It was established that they created fake accounts on social media that imitated the official accounts of various banks and non-bank credit institutions, offering loans to citizens at “low interest rates,” “without a guarantor,” and with “quick processing.”

After users entered their bank card details, CVV codes, and one-time passwords (OTPs) via fake links sent by the attackers, this data was obtained. Having gained illegal access to the bank accounts, the suspects transferred funds to various cards and subsequently cashed them out.

The Main Directorate for Combating Cybercrime has opened a criminal case on this matter. A court has ordered E. Mailov’s arrest as a preventive measure. Investigative actions against D. Bayramzade are ongoing.

The Ministry of Internal Affairs has once again urged citizens to trust only official and licensed platforms when receiving credit and other financial services, not to share card details on unknown websites, and to immediately contact the police if they encounter any suspicious activity.