The former head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ingushetia, accused in the case of protests in Magas, was released from custody

The Supreme Court of Kabardino-Balkaria changed the measure of restraint for the former head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Ingushetia and a member of the World Congress of the Ingush people, Akhmed Pogorov. this Magomed Gagiev, a lawyer, reports on his Instagram page.

Pogorov was released under house arrest, having satisfied the appeal of the defense. Lawyers argued that there was no need to keep Pogorov in custody, and also asked to take into account the deteriorating health of his elderly father.

Pogorov is accused in the case of protests against changing the border between Ingushetia and Chechnya. He is charged with participating in an extremist community (part 2 of article 282.1 of the Criminal Code) and organizing life-threatening violence against police officers (part 2 of article 318 of the Criminal Code with the application of part 3 of article 33). The publication "Fortanga" notes that Pogorov was a participant in the rally on March 26, 2019 in Magas and called the activists to order.

The protest leader was detained on February 26, 2021. Prior to that, he was put on the international wanted list, and the court also chose in absentia a preventive measure in the form of detention for the ex-minister. Earlier, the Nalchik court once again extended Pogorov's detention in a pre-trial detention center almost until the end of June 2021.

• 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, 2019, about 10 thousand people came to the 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 .
• According to the Memorial Human Rights Center, as of March 2021, in the wake of the rally in Magas, 51 people were brought to justice, and criminal prosecution against 3 of them was discontinued. More than 30 defendants in the "Ingush case" were sentenced to terms ranging from five months to three and a half years.