Russian migrants attacked in Abkhazia

At night on July 31, in Gudauta District of Abkhazia, a family of Russian citizens who settled there was subjected to an armed attack. As a result, out of three injured persons, a woman was hospitalized with brain concussion and burns.

In May, spouses Anatoly Ivanov and Valentina Bykovets moved from Saint Petersburg to a permanent residence in the village of Khipsta. According to the victims, an armed attack on them occurred on July 31, at about 2:00-3:00 a.m. at night.

"I heard a dog barking and went out into the yard to see who was there. I turned around and noticed a man in a black mask. He took me by the hair and laid me on the ground. I screamed, and he threatened to kill me right now," Valentina Bykovets told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent. According to the woman, then one of the criminals took her to the house, where her husband and cousin Vadim Lugin were, who came to visit them. "They beat me with a butt on the head and burned the parts of my body with an iron. They put a pistol to my head. I said: 'Take everything.' I was hit with a butt, and I lost consciousness. Then I recovered, and they dragged me to another room. They tortured me for a long time, about forty minutes," said the victim.

According to the victims, there were three attackers. Of them, two got automatic weapons and one got a pistol. One of the attackers found a bag with money, but said that this was not enough and continued to demand savings. The criminals took a Renault car, cut its seats in search for money and left.

The scene of the crime was visited by the Minister of Internal Affairs and the chief of the State Security Service (SSS), and the investigation was launched.

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