Natives of Chechnya and Dagestan complain of abuses in penal colony

Murad Shuaibov, sentenced on the charge of murdering a Dagestani journalist, reported on the practice of beating of prisoners in a penal colony. Anzor Gubashev, sentenced for the murder of Boris Nemtsov, complained about being abused for professing of Islam. Magomed Magomedov, a former member of the Dagestani parliament, complained about extortion of money in the penitentiary institution where he was serving his sentence.

Murad Shuaibov, a prisoner from Dagestan, has been kept in the penal colony since March 14. According to him, he was subjected to beating already a week after he had been brought there. "I was beaten, doused with cold water, and locked in a cold cell. They fed me with water and porridge," Murad Shuaibov told advocate Viktor Molodezhnikov.

Anzor Gubashev, sentenced in the case on the Boris Nemtsov's murder, who since January 2018 has been serving his sentence in the same penal colony with Murad Shuaibov, complains of religious persecution. According to Anzor Gubashev, on July 11, warders tore the cover of his Koran and threw his personal towel on the floor. Anzor Gubashev claims that he is regularly prevented from performing namaz (prayer), even in formally free time.

Magomed Magomedov, a former member of the Dagestani National Assembly, sentenced for extortion and fraud in July 2015, claims that warders extort money from wealthy prisoners. "So called 'activists' immediately began to demand money from me, supposedly for repair work in the penal colony," complained the former Dagestani MP. According to him, he had to agree to buy a refrigerator, a bench, and a table. "In the 'invalid' unit, where I was kept, everything was bought with my money, and prisoners are aware of that," said Magomed Magomedov.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on September 24, 2019 at 05:04 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.