An imam from Stavropol has been convicted of extremism.

A court sentenced the former imam of the village of Kok-Bas to 12 years in prison for creating an extremist cell, which he recruited two of his fellow villagers to join.

As reported by the "Caucasian Knot," a former religious figure from the Neftekumsk district is accused of creating a cell of an extremist organization; investigators consider two of his fellow villagers to be members of this cell.

The Neftekumsk City Court in Stavropol Krai sentenced the former imam of the village of Kok-Bas, accused of organizing an extremist community, Interfax reported today.

"Kundugdyev, being a religious figure of the village of Kok-Bas, organized a cell of an international religious association in the Neftekumsk district, the activities of which are banned in the Russian Federation. He recruited two more local people to the extremist community. residents who also held radical views," the agency quotes the press service of the FSB Directorate for Stavropol Krai as saying.

After the criminal case was opened, the accused was dismissed from his position as imam.

The court sentenced Kundugdyev to 12 years in a maximum-security penal colony, while two other residents of the village received two years in a general-security penal colony. All three were also sentenced to one year and six months of restricted freedom.

The press service of the Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia for the North Caucasus Federal District reported on its Telegram channel that the imam organized the community in 2022-2023. The arrests of the defendants were carried out by operatives in the Rostov Region, Krasnoyarsk Krai, and Moscow.

There is no information about Kundugdyev's sentence on the website of the Neftekumsk District Court.