Sentence of Ingush resident for attempting to murder his wife highlights problem of domestic violence in Northern Caucasus

A court sentenced Kureish Timurziev to seven years of imprisonment for inflicting several knife wounds to his wife Nata Matieva, the head of the “Good People Club” charity foundation, because of her desire to get a divorce. The case reminded the society of the fate of Regina Gagieva, a resident of North Ossetia, who was killed by her former husband, and of the need to protect victims of domestic violence, a blogger of the “Caucasian Knot” has noted.

In Magas, a court found 28-year-old Kureish Timurziev guilty of attempted murder of his wife, the “Kavkaz.Realii”* reports. According to the court’s version, on July 18, 2022, the defendant stabbed his wife “multiple times with a knife, including to vital organs,” causing “severe harm to her health.” Kureish Timurziev was unable to complete his plan, as the woman actively resisted and strangers came to her aid. The court sentenced the man to seven years of imprisonment in a penal colony, the Prosecutor’s Office for Ingushetia reported.

Victim’s sister Oksana Matieva stated that scandals often occurred in the family. “The quarrels mainly occurred due to the fact that my sister’s husband had not job, and sometimes he forbade her to go to work in order to show who was the boss. Recently, scandals occurred because of his addiction to psychotropic substances,” said Oksana Matieva as quoted by the “Fortanga” portal.

An author of the blog on the “Caucasian Knot” entitled “She Blogger. Northern Caucasus” wrote about the similarity of the cases with the attempted murder of Nata Matieva and the murder of Regina Gagieva in North Ossetia.

“Regina Gagieva addressed the police more than once because of beatings. The maximum she managed to achieve was a fine of 5000 roubles imposed on her husband ... Moreover, the women’s stories are similar in that this is just another case, after which nothing will change. Domestic violence will not be criminalized, and no protective warrants will be introduced, and no shelters for victims of violence will appear neither in North Ossetia nor Ingushetia,” wrote the blogger.

*Included by the Russian Ministry of Justice (MoJ) into the register of foreign agents.