SHAHNAZ HUSEYNOVA
Presenter and editor at Toplum TV; also worked for Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty and various Azerbaijani newspapers; imprisoned under bogus charges.
About Shahnaz Huseynova
Shahnaz Huseynova (full name: Shahnaz Baylar qizi Huseynova), known professionally as Shahnaz Baylarqizi, is a veteran Azerbaijani journalist. She was born on 16 October 1974.
Throughout her independent media career, she worked for various news outlets and focused on critical socio-political issues in Azerbaijan. Before her arrest in 2025, she was a presenter and host of a socio-political programme on the independent online media outlet Toplum TV.
Baylarqizi was under continuous state pressure prior to her 2024 arrest. For nearly a year, she was subject to an official travel ban. She was also questioned multiple times as a witness in the criminal investigation targeting Toplum TV. Furthermore, her imminent arrest was foreshadowed when a pro-government online outlet published a critical report about her just hours before she was detained.
Case description
Shahnaz Huseynova was detained on 5 February 2025 in Baku. During the search of her apartment, police seized her mobile phone and a laptop. The arrest caused significant stress, and an ambulance was called because her blood pressure spiked due to her existing health condition.On 6 February 2025, the Khatai District Court ordered her pre-trial detention for three months and fifteen days under the alleged charge of smuggling foreign currency by a group in prior collusion (Criminal Code Article 206.3.2). She denied the charges in court, claiming her arrest was related to her journalistic activities.Shahnaz Huseynova has diabetes and high blood pressure (hypertension). Due to a spike in her blood pressure during her arrest, she required an ambulance and was later placed under medical observation while in detention. On 26 February 2025, due to her health complications, the court released her under house arrest.In August 2025, the authorities amended the charges and added six additional crimes to the indictment, including employing workers without an official employment contract (Criminal Code Article 162-1.1), illegal entrepreneurship with particularly large income (Criminal Code Article 192.3.2), money laundering (legalisation of property obtained through criminal means) (Criminal Code Articles 193-1.3.1 and 193-1.3.2), and tax evasion committed by an organised group (Criminal Code Article 213.2.1).1,2,3
References
Resources about Shahnaz Huseynova
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