Baku hands over wanted fugitive to Turkmen authorities

Azerbaijan has extradited an internationally wanted suspect to Turkmenistan after approving a formal extradition request from the Turkmen authorities, the Azerbaijani Prosecutor General's Office said.

The Prosecutor General's Office granted a request from its counterpart in Turkmenistan to extradite Dovletgeldi Bashimov (born in 1979) for criminal prosecution, Caliber.Az reports per local media.

Bashimov had been placed on the international wanted list on charges of illegally acquiring, storing, and transporting potent substances for the purpose of distribution. The charges relate to substances that are neither narcotic drugs nor psychotropic substances and were allegedly committed by a group acting in prior conspiracy.

The suspect was located and detained in Azerbaijan in March 2026, after which a court ordered his pre-trial detention.

Following the completion of the extradition procedures, Bashimov was transferred to the competent authorities of Turkmenistan under the escort of a special convoy from the Penitentiary Service of Azerbaijan's Ministry of Justice, the statement said.

By Vafa Guliyeva