Imran Aliev's acquaintances report circumstances of his murder

Chechen blogger Imran Aliev was murdered in France after a native of Chechnya who came to Europe succeeded in gaining confidence in him, acquaintances of Imran Aliev reported.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on February 1, it became known that the body of Imran Aliev, a native of Chechnya and a blogger known as Mansur Stary, was found with stab wounds in a hotel in the French city of Lille. Imran Aliev was stabbed to death by a resident of the Gudermes District of Chechnya, who has already returned to the republic, blogger Tumso Abdurakhmanov stated on February 2.

Advocate Aslan Artsuev, the head of the German branch of the International Association "Peace and Human Rights", told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent that he knew the victim. According to him, Imran Aliev was granted refugee status in Belgium four years ago.

According to Aslan Artsuev, some time ago, a follower of the blogger's YouTube channel named Usman contacted Imran Aliev. The man complained to the blogger that he was suffering from stomach cancer and convinced him that he needed treatment in Europe. "The man entered into confidence. Imran Aliev was absolutely trusting. The killer arrived at the Imran's place in Belgium. Imran received the killer at his place, and he stayed with him for a week," Aslan Artsuev said.

"On January 28, Imran, his eldest son Islam, and the killer went to the Belgian city of Menen on the border with France. Then they left the city and crossed the border on foot, went to a pharmacy, and then sat in a cafe. Usman insisted that the Imran's son leave them alone and promised to look after his father. When the son returned an hour later, he did not find his father and his companion, while mobile phones did not answer. On Friday (January 31), the police called in the morning, and family members were taken to identify the body," the advocate said.

He suggested that the murder of Imran Aliev was politically motivated. "The blogger criticized Ramzan Kadyrov and the Chechen government without choosing expressions," said Aslan Artsuev.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on February 4, 2020 at 11:23 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.