Greek judicial authorities announced on Friday that they have temporarily detained Izzat Khanim Javadova, who has performed as a DJ in dance clubs under the name Mikaela and Mikaela Jav and is related to Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev, on drug trafficking charges.
Javadova was arrested on December 30 at a party near Athens, where drugs were seized by police.
“The case file includes charges of both usage and drug trafficking. There were packages of drugs in the 43-year-old’s possession and a large amount of money that was not justified, which the police believe came from drug trafficking at the party,” police spokesperson Konstantina Dimoglidou told MEGA TV on Friday.
According to the Greek broadcaster ERT, the DJ denied the charges.
“I did not organise the party [raided by the police] and I did not send online invitations…. Also, they did not find drugs on me,” she said.
She said that the party was “a Tekno Berlin Kinky Party dedicated to love and music”, and that the accusations were “an attack on LGBTQ people” by portraying them as drug users.
Greek police arrested ten people at then party on charges of drug possession, drug trafficking and dealing, including the DJ.
Javadova, who has performed in clubs in Ibiza and across Europe, has been embroiled in controversy before.
The Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, OCCRP, in a joint investigation with Transparency International’s UK chapter, revealed in 2021 that Javadova, and her husband, Suleyman Javadov, were under an investigation by the UK National Crime Agency, NCA, over reports that they had received 13.9 million pounds, or $19.6 million, from suspicious sources.
According to the NCA, the couple used a network of 20 offshore companies to send these funds to the UK. Six of these companies were allegedly part of the so-called Azerbaijani Laundromat, which the OCCRP described as a financial vehicle that allowed the country’s ruling elite to embezzle money, launder it and bribe Western politicians.
The couple denied the allegation, but The Guardian reported that they were ordered to hand over 4 million UK pounds to the NCA after admitting in a settlement that they had brought the money into the country illegally.
