Men accused of pogrom mention their motives for coming to Uytash airport

Magomed Omaraskhabov, accused in a case on pogrom, came to the airport in Makhachkala for family reasons, while another defendant Anvarbek Ataev came there out of curiosity, advocates stated.

The “Caucasian Knot” has reported that the Armavir City Court twice postponed the start of the consideration of the case on unrest at the Makhachkala airport against five defendants, included Anvarbek Ataev, Islam Ibragimov, Magomed Omaraskhabov, Rabadan Radjabov, and Salik Ramazanov. The arrest of the accused men has been extended until December 30. At a hearing of the Armavir City Court, a public prosecutor requested the court to sentence the five defendants to terms of imprisonment ranging from seven to ten years. Several more cases will soon be submitted to the courts in Kuban and the Stavropol Territory, the Russian General Prosecutor’s Office reports.

The men accused in the case on unrest at the Makhachkala airport, whose case is being considered by the Armavir City Court, have pleaded not guilty, their advocates report.

Laila Ubaidulaeva, an advocate of Magomed Omaraskhabov, has noted that her client came to the Makhachkala airport “for family reasons.” The advocate emphasizes that the only evidence provided by the public prosecutor is a video showing Magomed Omaraskhabov in the crowd at the airport. “However, simply being present at the scene of mass unrest is not considered a crime,” Laila Ubaidulaeva notes.

The advocate has emphasized that the Magomed Omaraskhabov’s case is not a single one. So, according to the advocate’s version, one of the defendants is accused of pushing someone, and the video shows that on the contrary, he himself was pushed.

Advocate Ramazan Aliev, who defended Anvarbek Ataev, said that he came to the Makhachkala airport simply “out of curiosity.” According to the advocate’s version, Anvarbek Ataev left the airport when he saw that the situation began to “cross borders.”