“Historic” conviction in German court in Azerbaijani Laundromat bribery scheme

Eduard Lintner, a former German Bundestag member from the Christian Social Union (CSU), has been convicted by the Higher Regional Court of Munich for accepting bribes from the Azerbaijani government, Zartonk Media reported.

The court sentenced Lintner to a nine-month suspended prison term.

The ruling marks a major development in the long-running “Azerbaijani Laundromat” scandal, a $2.9 billion cross-border bribery and money-laundering scheme reportedly aimed at polishing Baku’s international image while silencing criticism of its human rights abuses. The slush fund was uncovered by the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project (OCCRP) in 2017.

‘Azerbaijan’s ruling elite used a $2.9 billion slush fund to enrich themselves and pay European politicians to polish the country’s image amid international criticism of its human rights record’, the OCCRP wrote.

On June 2, as previously reported by Zartonk, Lintner admitted in court to handling payments from Azerbaijan—claiming they were part of lobbying efforts rather than bribes. 

Two other defendants—a former staffer and a relative of Lintner—have already confessed and had their cases dropped. A fourth suspect, former Christian Democratic Union lawmaker Axel Fischer, is scheduled to face trial later this year.

The verdict was welcomed by Transparency International.

Maíra Martini, CEO of Transparency International, said, “Today’s verdict shows that justice is possible, even in complex transnational corruption cases. Authorities in other countries linked to the Azerbaijani Laundromat scheme should follow Germany’s example and take action to ensure that those who took bribes and helped whitewash repression do not escape scrutiny. This case was never just about bribery; it’s also about safeguarding the integrity of democratic institutions.”