Human rights defenders claim no evidence of guilt in Musaeva’s case

In Pyatigorsk, the cassation court commuted the sentence of Zarema Musaeva, although the verdict should have been cancelled, as her guilt had not been proven, human rights defenders point out. The sentence was imposed by adding the sentences under two criminal articles, an advocate noted.

The “Caucasian Knot” has reported that on March 5, in Pyatigorsk, the cassation court reduced the term of Zarema Musaeva’s imprisonment by three months, to four years and nine months, thus granting a public prosecutor’s request. The court ignored the defence’s arguments that the criminal case materials contained no evidence of Zarema Musaeva’s guilt.

According to a report by advocate Alexander Savin, the crime of fraud played a special role, as because of that part, Zarema Musaeva was brought by law enforcers to the territory of Chechnya, first with the status of a witness.

The political nature of the criminal case determined the court’s decision, believes Sergey Babinets, the head of the “Team Against Torture”*. “Zarema Musaeva should now be free ... but this, apparently, is only possible in a parallel reality, where a person is not jailed in Russia when his or her children and relatives criticized the authorities,” Sergey Babinets noted.

However, when it comes to the sick person, even such a court’s decision seems to be good, the human rights defender adds.

The defence of Zarema Musaeva hopes that she will at least be able to be released on conditional early relief, the advocate emphasizes.

*The “Team against Torture” (TaT, formerly the “Committee against Torture” – CaT) was created by the lawyers who had earlier worked for the CaT, which was included into the register of the NCOs performing the functions of foreign agents.