Muslim Akhmaev is left in custody

The Supreme Court of Chechnya has rejected the complaint lodged by the defence of Muslim Akhmaev, who was detained in the same group with a student Varvara Karaulova on the border with Syria, about the decision to arrest him.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on July 6, the Urus-Martan City Court ruled to arrest the 32-year-old Akhmaev for two months. According to investigators, Akhmaev was, together with Varvara Karaulova, a student of the Moscow State University, among the Russians detained in Turkey at the attempt to get to the territory of Syria. The defence of Akhmaev appealed against his arrest.

Akhmaev and Karaulova were detained on June 4 in the Turkish-Syrian border within a group of 14 Russian citizens, who allegedly intended to join the "Islamic State" (IS), which is recognized a terrorist organization in Russia, USA, Turkey and other countries.

"I am preparing a complaint to the European Court of Human Rights (ECtHR) about the illegal institution of a criminal case and arrest of my client," said the advocate Ayndi Betrizov.

In his opinion, Akhmaev should be released from criminal liability in connection with his refusal to commit an offense, the RBC reports. The advocate refers to Article 208 of the Russian Criminal Code, which "provides for exemption from criminal liability of a person who has voluntarily terminated his participation in an illegal armed formation (IAF) and laid down his arms, if his actions had no other crime attributes."

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.