Russian authorities ignore thousands of appeals about Chechen native Seda Suleimanova’s fate

None of the institutions which received appeals with requests concerning the fate of Seda Suleimanova, who was taken by her relatives to Chechnya, checked the information about the possible murder of the young woman. More than 2000 appeals were forwarded to the Chechen law enforcement bodies, who organized the detention of Seda Suleimanova in Saint Petersburg.

The “Caucasian Knot” has reported that on August 23, 2023, the police came to 26-year-old Seda Suleimanova, who fled from Chechnya to Saint Petersburg, and her fiancé and detained them, explaining that the young woman was suspected of stealing jewellery. Seda Suleimanova was sent to Grozny, where she was handed over to her relatives. In February and March, Seda’s friend Lena Patyaeva held protests reminding people that nothing had been known about the Seda Suleimanova’s fate for more than six months.

More than 2000 appeals with a request to check the information about the possible murder of Seda Suleimanova, sent to the General Prosecutor’s Office, the Investigating Committee of the Russian Federation (ICRF), and the Russian Ombudsperson, were redirected to Chechnya, the “SK SOS Crisis Group”* reported.

“So far, none of the institutions has checked the information about the possible murder of the person,” the human rights defenders emphasize.

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