The court toughened the sentences of six defendants in the “Ingush case”

The Stavropol Regional Court toughened the punishment for six protesters in Magas who were convicted on charges of using violence against government officials (part 1 of article 318 of the Criminal Code). This was reported by the Human Rights Center "Memorial".

The court of appeal did not change the term of imprisonment, but added the motive of political hostility to the head of Ingushetia, Yunus-Bek Yevkurov, and replaced the colony-settlement with a colony of general regime.

The sentence was toughened for Aslan Aushev, Adam Badiev, Zelimkhan Bapkhoev, Akhmed Nalgiev, Gelani Khamkhoev, Zubeir Khamkhoev.

The court left the verdict to Amir Oskanov unchanged.

Previously, Bapkhoev was sentenced to one and a half years, Aushev and Zubeyr Khamkhoev - to a year and eight months, Nalgiev and Gelani Khamkhoev - to a year and nine months, Badiev - to a year and ten months, Oskanov - to a year and eleven months in prison.

“Changes in the behavior of judges in the Ingush case are dictated by incoming factors. One of them is the mass unsanctioned rally that took place in Vladikavkaz on April 20 <…> Obviously, the authorities fear that this is only the “first bell” and that social protests can grow,” Oleg Orlov, a member of the Board of the Memorial Human Rights Center, comments on the court’s decision.

Orlov also added that the motive for political hostility among the protesters is necessary for the Investigative Committee to prepare a trial against the leaders of the Ingush protests.

• On April 22, the court toughened the punishment for other defendants in the Ingush case, Bagaudin Myakiev and Ruslan Dzeytov.
• The Investigative Committee opened a criminal case on incitement to mass riots (part 3 of article 212 of the Criminal Code) and the use of life-threatening and health-threatening violence against law enforcement officers (part 2 of article 318 of the Criminal Code) immediately after the March protests in Magas in 2019. In it, according to the Human Rights Center "Memorial", about 40 defendants, at least 29 defendants are in custody.
• In September 2018, the authorities of Ingushetia and Chechnya signed an agreement to change the border between the republics, after which protests began in Ingushetia. On March 26, about 10,000 people came out to a rally in Magas. About two thousand protesters remained on the square all night. In the morning they began to be dispersed, as a result of which clashes broke out between the security forces and the protesters .