Bagautdin Myakiev rejects investigators' version about damage to property at SIZO

The restart of the criminal case against Bagautdin Myakiev, suspected of damaging property during his stay at the Nalchik SIZO (pre-trial prison), has to do with his actions in support of political prisoners, his advocate has stated. Myakiev himself denies his guilt.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that Bagautdin Myakiev was detained in April 2019, shortly after a rally in Magas. On February 20, 2020, the Ingush activist was sentenced to one year and nine months of imprisonment in a penal colony. The defendant admitted that at the rally he threw chairs in the direction of law enforcers, but said that he did not aim at fighters of the National Guard of Russia. On August 27, 2020, Bagautdin Myakiev was set free, and he regularly holds pickets after his release.

"A criminal case on the fact of property damage was initiated in October 2019; then, it was suspended because investigators could not find Bagautdin Myakiev, although at that very time he was practically nearby – at the Nalchik SIZO," Magomed Aushev, an advocate of the Ingush activist, told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

Mr Aushev believes that the restart of the suspended criminal case against his client has to do with Myakiev's actions in Magas. "I think they did it at the request of their colleagues from Ingushetia. The fact is that Bagautdin Myakiev, who has served his sentence, continues his active engagement in what he did before his arrest. Since the start of the trial on the so-called 'Ingush case' in Essentuki, Bagautdin regularly holds solo pickets in support of the defendants," said the advocate.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on March 6, 2021 at 05:52 am MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.