Bangladesh, Sept. 9 -- A high-profile corruption trial in Azerbaijan has ended with the conviction of one of the countrys most prominent former oil executives. On September 8, the Baku Court of Grave Crimes sentenced Ramin Isayev, the former general director of SOCAR AQS, to 14 years in prison on charges of embezzlement, fraud, money laundering, and abuse of office. The court also ordered the confiscation of real estate, cash, and other assets tied to Isayev and his family, underscoring the severity of the case in a country where oil wealth has long been intertwined with corruption scandals.

Isayev, who ran SOCAR AQS between 2008 and 2020, oversaw one of the most important subsidiaries of SOCAR (the State Oil Company of Azerbaijan Republ...