Crimean Arsen Abkhairov, who was sentenced to 13 years in the Hizb ut-Tahrir case, cannot appeal the fact that the time he spent in pretrial detention was not counted towards his prison term. This was reported by Krymskaya Solidarnost , citing his lawyer Maria Terekhova .
The lawyer emphasizes that her client should have already left prison and served his sentence in a maximum security penal colony, but Abkhairov cannot obtain the protocol and audio record of the court hearing in order to file an appeal and challenge the court's decision.
In November 2020, he was sentenced to 13 years in prison under the article on participation in the activities of a terrorist organization (Part 2 of Article 205.5 of the Criminal Code). The man is in Prison-2 in Yeniseisk (Krasnoyarsk Krai).
Along with Abkhairov, Rustem Emiruseinov and Eskender Abdulganiev were sentenced to 17 and 12 years in a maximum security penal colony, respectively. According to the investigation, the three men carried out the activities of the banned Islamist party Hizb ut-Tahrir; the court found Emiruseinov to be the organizer of the cell, and the others to be its ordinary participants.
Earlier, Abkhairov told his wife that he suffered from swelling and pain in his legs. According to her, the man developed varicose veins due to the strict conditions of detention - getting up at 6 am and going to bed at 10 pm. Also, due to bad water, the convict developed an allergic reaction and skin problems.
In addition, Abkhairov is concerned about dental problems that appeared in the pretrial detention center, where there was no dental office.
18:40 Civil journalist and activist of the Crimean Solidarity movement Remzi Bekirov, sentenced to 19 years, also cannot appeal the court's decision to count his time in pretrial detention as prison time.
Bekirov also spoke about the “great information hunger” and strict daily routine in Prison No. 2.
- The Islamist party Hizb ut-Tahrir has been declared a terrorist organization in Russia. Its members are being accused and sentenced to real prison terms simply because they met in apartments, read religious literature, and recruited new members. According to the Research Center "Owl" And project "Support for political prisoners. Memorial" , the party was recognized as terrorist in Russia unlawfully.
- According to the project "Assistance to Political Prisoners. Memorial" as of August 31, 2023, at least 335 people are being prosecuted in connection with their involvement in Hizb ut-Tahrir al-Islami, of which 25 are wanted. At least 274 people have been convicted, of which 115 defendants have been sentenced to terms exceeding fifteen years in prison. In total, Memorial has recognized 289 defendants in cases of involvement in Hizb ut-Tahrir al-Islami as political prisoners (241 of them are currently being prosecuted, and 48 of them have been released after serving their sentences).