Former German Lawmakers to Face Court on Charges of Bribery from Azerbaijan

Two former members of the German parliament, the Bundestag, from the opposition Christian Democratic Union/Christian Social Union alliance, are set to appear before the Munich Higher Regional Court as part of the so-called 'Azerbaijani case' on charges of bribery, according to a court representative. This was reported by dw.com.

The accused in the 'Azerbaijani case' are politicians Axel Fischer and Eduard Lintner. Fischer is accused of receiving bribes, while Lintner is charged with bribing officials to influence decisions in favor of Azerbaijan during the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe (PACE). Both suspects deny the allegations.

According to investigation data, Lintner, who worked in PACE since 2010, reportedly received several million euros in 2016 through 19 fake companies. Part of that money was allegedly passed on to other lawmakers who were supposed to influence the adoption of decisions he needed, investigators believe.

Fischer, who also worked in PACE since 2010, made statements favorable to Azerbaijan and sent confidential documents. For this, he allegedly received a bribe of €21,800.

In a statement to dpa agency, Eduard Lintner described the bribery charges as 'complete nonsense.' According to Lintner, after his parliamentary term ended, he worked as a lobbyist for the recognition of Nagorno-Karabakh as part of Azerbaijan, which he claims is 'true from the perspective of international law.' He stated that Baku paid money to his companies, but he did not pass on any money to other lawmakers.

Axel Fischer told dpa that the charges against him are 'not accurate.'