Azerbaijan, Baku, 2 September / Trend , corr. I.Alizade / The Ministry of National Security of Azerbaijan announced the names of those suspected of the blast at the Abu Bakir Mosque located in U.Bunyadzade Street of Baku city at 08.50PM on 17 August.
"It was determined as a result of the complex operational search measures, taken by the Ministry to promptly disclose the crime, that the persons suspected of the crime are Ilgar Mollachiyev, from Azerbaijan's district of Zakatala, under nickname of 'Abdulmajid', who participated in the illegal armed unions in North Caucasus, announced himself 'Emir' of Dagestan people and his brother-in-law Samir Mehdiyev, under nickname "Suleyman" and other radical religious persons who were in criminal touch with them," the statement provided jointly by the Ministry of National Security and Prosecutor General's Office said.
The blast took place at the Abu Bakir Mosque located in U.Bunyadzade Street of Baku city at 08.50PM on 17 August. Unknown man threw two RGD-1 kinds of grenades into the Mosque, breaking the Mosque's window with stone. According to the official data, two men died in this incident, and 18 were wounded.
Investigation of this incident was commissioned to the Baku City Public Prosecutor's Office and criminal case was filed on this incident in accordance with Articles 120.2.4 (deliberate homicide through common dangerous method), 120.2.7 (deliberate homicide of two or more people) and 228.1 (illegal purchase, transfer, sale, storage, conveyance or carrying of firearms, components details of them, ammunition, explosive substances and facilities) of the Criminal Code. However, due to presence of terrorism signs in the crime, later the criminal case was entrusted on the Head Investigation Department of the Ministry of National Security.
The joint statement says that already in 2007 the Ministry of National Security rendered harmless the armed union 'Meshe Gardashlari' arrested its 17 members, including one of its leaders, Naif Abdulkarim Al-Bedevi with nickname 'Abu Jafar' and sentenced to prison for certain periods according to the judgment of the court. And criminal prosecution was continued with regards to one of the leader of the armed union Ilgar Mollachiyev, his brother-in-law Samir Mehdiyev and others.
It was made clear that Ilgar Mollachiyev and Samir Mehdiyev planned to re-establish the activity of armed union 'Meshe Gardashlari', create illegal armed unions in north regions of Azerbaijan and commit acts of terror directed towards disturbing public-political stability in Azerbaijan in general.
The Ministry of National Security has carried out a special operation to prevent these criminal intentions. As a result of urgent measures, 13 people were arrested as accused and made criminally responsible. Many fire-arms, military supplies, explosive materials, various maps etc. belonging to them have been revealed and withdrawn.
Of them, residents of Sumgayt city, Taleh Maharramov and Samir Babayev provided detailed testimonies regarding the activity, plans and intentions of the military union, which they have joined. Thus, during talks with their childhood friend Samir Mehdiyev and other, they reprobated the people praying at the Abu Bekr Mosque, considered them away from Islam and hold exchange of view on jihad. In connection with it, according to order of Ilgar Mollachiyev, Samir Mehdiyev tried to re-establish activity of armed union 'Meshe Gardashlari' in order to carry out jihad in Azerbaijan.
For this purpose, re-established contacts with his friends Taleh Maharramov, Samir Babayev, Fariz Mammadov, Elshan Allahverdiyev, Zabit Shihkbabayev and other who differed with their religious radicalism. On 19 July 2008 Ilgar Mollachiyev, Samir Mehdiyev and other two people illegally passed the State border of Azerbaijan and settled in Baku and Sumgayt cities with the help of the same persons in order to organize jihad in Azerbaijan.
According to the plan of Mollachiyev and Mehdiyev, the members of the first group 'Sumgayit Camaati' ("Sumgayt Public"), which is part of 'Meshe Gardashlari', had to commit robberies in Baku, provide arm and supplies due to obtained money, commit acts of terror, and the second group "Guba ve Gusar Camaati" had to create military camps in the mountain and forest area of the Republic. For this purpose, special shelters had already been created in Guba and Gusar districts of Azerbaijan, arms and military supplies were obtained and food reserve was provided.
Taleh Maharramov and Samir Babayev stated in their testimonies that they confirmed that the incident was committed by Ilgar Mollachiyev and Samir Mehdiyev and talked to Samir Mehdiyev about this. Samir Mehdiyev said that the crime was indeed committed by them and tasked to maintain it secret.
The urgent operational search measures are continuing to reveal and make criminally responsible all members of this organizational gang, investigate all cases of the crime. Information on this will be made publicly available.
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