On February 4, the Baku Court of Appeal ordered the release of Elena Khakhaleva, a former judge of Russia’s Krasnodar Region, who had been detained in Azerbaijan for extradition at the request of the Russian Prosecutor's Office.

Lawyer Shahla Humbatova, who filed an appeal to change the preventive measure, announced the court's decision on Facebook. "On February 4, the Baku Court of Appeal made a decision to release Elena Khakhaleva from custody. Then we went to the prosecutor's office to prepare some documents," she stated.

The Press Service of the Prosecutor General’s Office of Azerbaijan confirmed that the appeal regarding Khakhaleva, who had been placed on an international wanted list by the Russian Investigative Committee, was reviewed by the Baku Court of Appeal. The Khazar District Prosecutor’s Office decided on a preventive measure of police custody after the court canceled her pre-trial detention.

Additionally, the Prosecutor General’s Office of Azerbaijan is currently reviewing the extradition documents submitted by the Prosecutor General’s Office of Russia.

Notably, this court decision was taken against the background of the crisis in Azerbaijani-Russian relations caused by the alleged shooting down of an Azerbaijani passenger airliner by a Russian air defence system on 25 December 2024.