Nine defendants in the “Citizens of the USSR” case from Karachay-Cherkessia, a region in the North Caucasus, have been sentenced.

On 14 July, the Cherkessk City Court passed judgement on nine defendants in the “Citizens of the USSR” case. This was reported by the court press service, as noted by OVD-Info.

Five of the defendants were sentenced to terms of between five and eight years in a general regime penal colony. Another four received suspended sentences, though the press service did not specify for how long. In addition, three defendants were banned from involvement in activities related to civil society organisations for six years, and the remaining six received a comparable ban for five years. All the defendants also had their freedom restricted for a year, and two of them were fined 20,000 roubles (about US$220).

Case records show that there are ten defendants in total. Whether judgement has been delivered for all is not specified by the press service. According to the court’s case list, nine convicted persons were charged with organising the activities of an extremist organisation (Part 1, Article 282.1 of the Criminal Code), one of them was also charged with illegal trafficking in explosives or explosive devices (Part 1, Article 222.1), and another with illegal possession of firearms (Point “a,” Part 3, Article 222). A further person was charged with participation in the activities of an extremist organisation (Part 2, Article 282.1).

This is likely the criminal case against 11 residents of Karachay-Cherkessia, a region in the North Caucasus. They are Aslan Naptugov, Vladimir Ilyichev, Abdulmalik Shoev, Oleko Kuzhev, Adnan Meremshaov, Larisa Yakusheva, Oleg Bondarenko, Olga Primak, Yulia Kambieva, Svetlana Darova and Anita Tukova.

It is known that initially Naptugov, Ilyichev, Shoev, and Kuzhev were charged with participation in an extremist community, and Meremshaov was also accused of illegal trafficking in explosives. The articles charged against the other defendants are unknown. It is possible that the charges were reclassified in the verdict or during proceedings.

According to the investigators, the defendants “identifying themselves as ‘citizens of the USSR,’” from March 2019 to June 2020, in the territory of the Karachay-Cherkess Republic, created, led, and participated in an extremist community, “pursuing personal gain by avoiding payment of credit obligations, utility fees, and taxes.” In addition, the defendants “committed illegal trafficking in explosives or explosive devices, firearms, and ammunition.”

None of the nine defendants mentioned by the press service admitted guilt.

• Civil society activist Aslan Naptugov was detained on 24 May; the next day, he was arrested for six days for allegedly committing petty hooliganism (Art. 20.1 of the Code of Administrative Offences). However, after this term expired, he failed to re-establish contact; he was then detained in connection with the criminal case.
• Aslan Naptugov, Vladimir Ilyichev, Abdulmalik Shoev, Oleko Kuzhev, and Adnan Meremshaov were held in pre-trial detention, while the others were under a travel ban. The case reached the court in August 2023.