Advocate and relatives of suspect of committing terror act in Vladikavkaz had no contact with him for two weeks

On May 11, Batyr Akhilgov, advocate of Issa Khashagulgov, a resident of Ingushetia, had a meeting with his client, who is suspected of organizing the terror act in North Ossetia. The meeting was sanctioned after Akhilgov and Khashagulgov wife complained to rights defenders that since April 22 the advocate had no chance to meet his client.

According to the lawyer, the inspector, who is running the case, did not answer his telephone calls. The IVS (temporary detention facility) said that Khashagulgov was not there; same answers were received from the two Vladikavkaz SIZOs (pre-trial prisons). According to Akhilgov, advocates of other detainees, whose criminal cases were dealt with by the investigatory team headed by A. V. Chaptsev, senior investigator of the Second Division for Specially Important Cases of the Chief Investigatory Department for NCFD of the ICRF, occurred in the same situation. The advocate noted that Chaptsev was replaced by a new head - Arkady Avdeev.

On May 11 in the afternoon, Batyr Akhilgov managed to meet Issa Khashagulgov. The meeting took place after Akhilgov and several other lawyers from Ingushetia talked with Arkady Avdeev. He assured the lawyers that in future they would have no problems in performing their duties and promised to strictly follow the observance of defendants' rights.

The investigator also said that detainees would be kept in the IVS for no more than 10 days; then, they would be transferred to the SIZOs of Nalchik and Stavropol Territory. He failed to explain why detainees could not be kept in SIZOs of Vladikavkaz or Ingushetia.