Chechen gays Magamadov and Isaev sentenced to long terms of imprisonment

In Chechnya, a court sentenced Salekh Magamadov to eight and Ismail Isaev to six years of imprisonment. The case against the brothers has been fabricated, and the defence will appeal against the verdict, says advocate Alexander Nemov.

The “Caucasian Knot” has reported that the advocates were seeking to transfer the case to another region for consideration, but the court refused them, and the hunger strike, declared by the brothers, also proved fruitless. The “Amnesty International” (AI) demanded to release the brothers. The human rights defenders note that belonging to the LGBT community is not a crime.

“The today’s verdict is a crime against common sense. Magamadov and Isaev are not guilty, and their case is completely fabricated. If it weren’t for the publicity in the media, Salekh and Ismail would be already killed in Chechnya,” said advocate Alexander Nemov.

‘Salekh and Ismail believe that the case against them has been fabricated because of their sexual orientation and oppositional views,” notes Miron Rozanov, the press secretary for the “CK SOS” crisis group.

Ismail Isaev was first detained in August 2019 in Grozny, when a policeman found an LGBT flag while checking the suspect’s mobile phone. Ismail Isaev was being kept in the police department for 10 days with a demand of a “ransom” from his mother.