Analysts are sceptical about participation of Stavropol natives in Basaev's raid

The cases about the participation of residents of the Stavropol Territory in the actions of the gangs commanded by Basaev and Khattab look very much alike and are often falsified, Narine Airapetyan, an advocate, said in connection with the criminal prosecution of two natives of the Nogai village of Kayasula.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on June 17, 2020, two residents of of the Neftekamsk District of the Stavropol Territory, Surtlanbek Adjinyazov and Ruslanbek Arslanov, were detained within the case of the attack on Dagestan in 1999 as members of Basaev's and Khattab's gangs. On April 12, 2021, the first hearing of their case was held at the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don.

Such criminal cases often turn out to be fabricated, Ms Airapetyan, an advocate, who deals with cases of illegal armed formations (IAFs), told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent. "For all natives from the Stavropol Territory, the plot of the case is always the same," she said.

The advocate has stressed that cases are being fabricated against completely innocent people. "People didn't participate, but under threats, including torture, other people are forced to testify against them. And this is all too often – at the moment, they've already convicted five persons. For example, one of my clients, who is now serving his prison term in the Ulyanovsk Region, told me that he is under pressure to force him to testify on the events of 1999 against the persons whom he had never known before," Narine Airapetyan has stated.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on May 1, 2021 at 06:41 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.