A court of appeals in Baku has released former Azerbaijani lawmaker Gular Ahmadova, who was sentenced to three years in jail for extortion via fraud and obstruction of justice.

The court replaced Ahmadova's three-year incarceration sentence with a suspended sentence on May 5. She left the courtroom a free woman.

Ahmadova was arrested in February 2013 after a video circulated on the Internet in September 2012 showing her demanding a $1.3 million bribe from an academician to secure a seat in parliament for him.

The video caused a public uproar.

Ahmadova said the video was edited to frame her. She was later sentenced to three years in prison.

Ahmadova refused to comment to journalists about her release on May 5.

Bakudaily.az