Rufat Safarov Net Worth

Background and career

Rufat Safarov (full name: Rufat Eldar oglu Safarov, Azerbaijani: Rüfət Eldar oğlu Səfərov, born October 11, 1981, Zahmat, Zangibasar District) is an Azerbaijani human rights defender, political prisoner and former investigator. Safarov worked as an investigator in the Zardab District Prosecutor's Office from 2011 to 2015.

On December 20, 2015, he publicly announced his resignation from his position, stating that he could no longer tolerate the "suppression of people's rights and freedoms." Shortly after this, under the instructions of Kamran Aliyev, head of the Main Directorate for Combating Corruption at the General Prosecutor's Office, a criminal case was initiated against him under Article 311.3.2 of the Criminal Code of Azerbaijan (accepting bribes). On January 15, he was arrested, and a week later, he was placed under house arrest. Even under house arrest, he continued making statements criticizing the government. On September 8, 2016, the Lankaran Court for Serious Crimes sentenced Rufat Safarov to 9 years in prison, and he was taken into custody in the courtroom. After 2 years and 6 months of imprisonment, he was released under a presidential amnesty decree issued on March 16, 2019. After his release, he resumed his work, initially as a public activist and then as a human rights defender.

In July 2020, he founded the human rights organization "Defense Line" (az. Müdafiə Xətti) and served as its executive director. Since then, he has continued his human rights work in Azerbaijan.

In December 2024, he was arrested again on charges under Articles 127.2.3 (intentional infliction of minor bodily harm), 221.1 (hooliganism), and 178.3.2 (fraud with large damage) of the Azerbaijani Criminal Code. This arrest was recognized by both local and international communities as politically motivated. According to Safarov, he was supposed to receive an award from United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken for his human rights work, and his arrest was aimed at preventing this from happening.

He is currently held in the Baku Pre-Trial Detention Center of the Penitentiary Service of the Ministry of Justice.