The prosecutor’s office of Chechnya requested 8.5 and 6.5 years in prison for the brothers Salekh Magamadov and Ismail Isaev, who were forcibly taken from Nizhny Novgorod to Chechnya two years ago. They are accused of assisting terrorists.
Znak.com was told about this in the SK SOS crisis group.
The investigation claims that the young people handed over to one of the members of the illegal armed group a bag of food: bread, juice, tea and chocolates. The investigation explains the difference in the requested terms by the fact that Isaev was a minor at the time of the crime he was accused of. The defense is sure that the real reason for the persecution of Magamadov and Isaev is their unconventional orientation and atheism.
Magamadov and Isaev do not admit their guilt, insist on their own innocence and believe that the case against them was fabricated.
The brothers’ defense also insists on their innocence.
“There is not a single objective evidence of the guilt of my clients in the materials of the criminal case. The criminal prosecution of Magamadov and Isaev is connected with their activities – criticism of the authorities, non-traditional sexual orientation and views, since they are atheists. None of the above is a criminal offense in the Russian Federation. My clients were repeatedly tortured, abducted, their procedural rights were constantly violated,” lawyer Alexander Nemov said in court.
The human rights activist also claims that his clients were not familiar with the man from illegal armed groups whom they allegedly supplied with food. He notes that none of the witnesses could clarify this point either.
On February 4, 2020, Chechen security forces, with the help of the Nizhny Novgorod police, abducted young people from an apartment where they were waiting to receive political asylum from another country. They were taken to Chechnya, and the lawyers were not allowed to meet with the brothers until February 20, 2020.
