{"id":277567,"date":"2023-06-15T19:07:51","date_gmt":"2023-06-15T15:07:51","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.meydan.tv\/?p=277567"},"modified":"2023-06-15T19:43:12","modified_gmt":"2023-06-15T15:43:12","slug":"after-vasif-talibov-left-office-family-properties-changed-hands","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.meydan.tv\/en\/article\/after-vasif-talibov-left-office-family-properties-changed-hands\/","title":{"rendered":"After Vasif Talibov left office, family properties changed hands"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The sons of the former ruler of an insular Azerbaijani exclave quietly transferred ownership of tens of millions of dollars\u2019 worth of properties after their father stepped down following pressure from the central government, documents show.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Vasif Talibov presided for 27 years over a secretive and oppressive administration in Nakhchivan, an autonomous republic that has often been referred to as \u201cAzerbaijan\u2019s North Korea.\u201d During that time, the Talibov family accumulated vast wealth, including properties and companies in Azerbaijan and elsewhere in the region.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

President Aliyev did not announce his motivation for the crackdown, which followed a 2022 OCCRP investigation<\/a> revealing that Talibov\u2019s sons, Rza and Seymur, received over $20 million in suspicious Credit Suisse and other bank transfers, and bought properties in Dubai and Georgia worth an estimated $63 million.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A statement from Aliyev\u2019s office<\/a> said Nakhchivan\u2019s new administrator would be instructed to \u201cfight against corruption.\u201d Top officials under Talibov lost their posts, including his brother, Maharram, who had been the exclave\u2019s deputy prosecutor.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Talibov family members had owned 100 percent of Nakhchivan Bank, which is based in the autonomous region. But they sold their shares on February 1, according to the bank\u2019s latest annual report<\/a>, a time when they faced pressure from the central government in Baku.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In Dubai, Rza and Seymur, recently transferred ownership of six properties that are worth at least $39 million in total. Rza also shifted ownership of a five-star hotel in Georgia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cAll this shows that, just as Vasif Talibov\u2019s political power has come to an end, there are also problems surrounding the economic wealth under his control,\u201d said Zohrab Ismayil, co-founder of Open Azerbaijan Initiative, an anti-corruption group.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSo they want to get out of this situation somehow.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Seymur and Rza Talibov did not respond to OCCRP\u2019s requests for comment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Even as his father\u2019s regime crumbled in Nakhchivan, Rza retained his position in Baku as head of the Citizenship Issues department at the State Migration Services. Seymur is a member of Nakhchivan\u2019s parliament \u2014 at least until the next elections, scheduled for 2025.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The heightened scrutiny that comes with these official positions might have increased pressure on the brothers to transfer ownership of the properties, Ismayil said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Talibovs\u2019 Dubai Properties<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Until recently, Seymur\u2019s name was on ownership papers for The Class Hotel Apartments, located in a high-rise in Dubai. Records obtained by reporters show that it is now owned \u2013\u2013 at least on paper \u2013\u2013 by a Turkish national named Fatih Aydin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Aydin is chairman of a Turkish company called Reges Turizm \u0130n\u015faat Sanayi ve Ticaret A.\u015e., which is closely associated with the Talibov family.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last year, Aydin also became deputy chairman of another Turkish company, Opera Otel Yat\u0131r\u0131mlar\u0131 A.\u015e. Another man became chair, replacing Ilham Naghiyev who owned the firm with his brother Ilgar \u2014 sons of Azerbaijan\u2019s Security Chief Ali Naghiyev. The company was previously co-owned by Ali\u2019s brother Vali, who is a high ranking official at Migration Services, alongside Rza.<\/p>\n\n\n\n