16:26, 6 March 2018

Chechen court leaves Oyub Titiev behind bars

Oyub Titiev. Photo by the press service of the HRC "Memorial"

Today, the Staropromyslovsky Court of Grozny has refused to release Oyub Titiev under the guarantee of two Russian presidential candidates and extended his arrest until May 9.

The today's court session on his case was attended by more than 10 journalists, as well as rights defenders and politicians, including Grigory Yavlinsky, a presidential candidate, who had asked to release Titiev under his guarantee.

Oyub Titiev is under arrest since January 11 on charges of possessing marijuana. He stated that the drug was planted on him by a law enforcer, but investigators refused to initiate a criminal case on his application. The Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial" recognized Titiev to be a political prisoner.

The defence asked to release Titiev under the personal guarantees of presidential candidates Grigory Yavlinsky and Ksenia Sobchak.

Marina Dubrovina, an advocate, insisted that the indication only to the gravity of the crime was not enough for detention; however, the investigator and the prosecutor objected to the Titiev's release on bail.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.

Source: CK correspondent