Court refuses to release two Magas protesters

On February 20, the Supreme Court (SC) of Kabardino-Balkaria dismissed a complaint filed about arrests of Isropil Nalgiev and Amirkhan Bekov. The activists were taken into custody on suspicion of using violence against law enforcers during a rally in Magas, an advocate reported.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on March 26, 2019, opponents of the Chechen-Ingush border agreement, who also succeeded in seeking the resignation of Ingush leader Yunus-Bek Evkurov, did not leave the square after the sanctioned rally in Magas. When the police tried to disperse them, clashes occurred between the protestors and law enforcers. Since early April 2019, mass arrests of activists took place in the republic, and at least 29 people were involved in criminal cases as defendants.

The Supreme Court of Kabardino-Balkaria upheld the decision of the Nalchik City Court to arrest Isropil Nalgiev and Amirkhan Bekov until April 3, reported advocate Khusen Guliev. The court of appeal held a hearing earlier, on February 20.

"Isropil Nalgiev and Amirkhan Bekov pleaded not guilty. According to the indictment, a group of unidentified persons used violence against fighters of the National Guard of Russia. The indictment does not specify what Amirkhan Bekov and Isropil Nalgiev specifically did," the advocate told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

According to the advocate, investigators also did not provide any video materials proving the guilt of Isropil Nalgiev and Amirkhan Bekov.

"It turns out that Isropil Nalgiev and Amirkhan Bekov were taken into custody only for their participation in the rally," Khusen Guliev stated.

The advocate also announced the intention to file an appeal against the court's decision.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on February 21, 2020 at 03:11 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.