10 March 2021, 08:58
Rights defenders encouraged by transfer of materials on Chechen Tepsurkaev to Krasnodar investigators
Chechen investigators have handed the materials of the check on the use of violence against Salman Tepsurkaev, the moderator of the "1Adat" chat of the Telegram channel, over to their colleagues in the Krasnodar Territory. This will make the investigation more efficient and help in establishing the whereabouts of the kidnapped person, the "Committee against Torture" (CaT) has expressed some hope.
The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that Tepsurkaev's relatives believe that he had been taken to a security structure in Grozny. In November 2020, Chechen investigators began a new check of allegations about Tepsurkaev's kidnapping, but human rights defenders have treated it as too late.
In September 2020, a video in which a naked Tepsurkaev sits on a bottle, explaining that he was doing this as a punishment for his cooperation with the "1Adat" Telegram channel, which criticizes Chechen authorities, triggered a broad resonance. Since then, his family could not contact him.
For four times, Chechen investigators refused to open a criminal case on the use of violence against Tepsurkaev. Their last refusal was cancelled by the Chechen Prosecutor's Office on February 8.
Human rights defenders believe that the transfer of inquiry materials from Chechnya to Krasnodar can promote the process.
It will be much easier to interact with investigators of the Krasnodar Territory than with their Chechen colleagues, said Magomed Alamov, the head of the North-Caucasian branch of the CaT. According to his story, there were no cases in his practice when investigators from another region helped in solving a kidnapping case of residents of Chechnya.
This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on March 9, 2021 at 08:09 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.
Author: Gor Alexanyan Source: CK correspondent
