Moslems of Pyatigorsk feel perplexed with arrest of Imam in Stavropol Territory

The Moslem community of the city of Pyatigorsk (Stavropol Territory) is puzzled with the arrest and extortion charges of the Imam of the mosque of Pyatigorsk.

"I know the arrested Imam, who is like my son by the age, as a very decent, clean and bright person, almost sacred. He called his parishioners to love all the people and all the neighbours, irrespective of their nationalities and creeds. I cannot imagine the charge of this sort to be presented to him," one of women-parishioners of the mosque told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

We remind you that on January 27 the RIA "Novosti" informed that in Pyatigorsk employees of the Department for Fighting Organized Crime (UBOP) detained on suspicion of extortion the Imam of the city mosque - a member of the Spiritual Board of Moslems of the Karachaevo-Circassian Republic (KCR) and Stavropol Territory. "Another suspect - a jobless man - was detained together with the Imam. They are suspected of keeping a man in June 2004 during 24 hours in a computer hall, and of extorting from him under far-fetched pretext 30 thousand roubles," the source of the Agency said.

Vadim Pinchuk, Deputy Public Prosecutor of Pyatigorsk, has confirmed that a criminal case was initiated against the Imam, but refrained from any comments, referring to secrecy of investigation.

The Imam of Pyatigorsk mosque, who is now in custody, is a young man born in 1980, who had professed Christianity until recently. It is said in the statement of the Moslem community of Pyatigorsk, placed in the website "Islam-Info", that "Imam Abdullah (Stepanenko, Anton Yurievich) came to Islam from Christianity. The background was his thorough, long-term study of the history and fundamentals of world religions. He made his choice consciously and independently."