Law enforcement reported the detention of a Basayev associate in Ingushetia.

In three regions, including Ingushetia, three suspected participants in the attacks by the Basayev and Khattab group on law enforcement officers in 1999 and 2000 have been detained.

As reported by "Caucasian Knot", investigators regularly report on the criminal prosecution of suspected former militants. For instance, in April 2023, a court sentenced Hafiz Razzakov to life imprisonment, recognizing him as a member of the field commanders' group of Shamil Basayev and Amir Khattab, guilty of attacking a convoy of the Perm OMON in Chechnya in 2000.

Human rights defenders see an element of propaganda in the new arrests related to the attack on the Pskov paratroopers in Chechnya

Three Russian citizens have been detained on charges of attacks "as part of the armed groups of Sh. Basayev and Khattab" on military personnel near the village of Chervlennaya in October 1999 and on employees of the Perm OMON near the village of Djani-Vedeno in March 2000, the FSB reported today on its website.

"The individuals in question were detained at their places of residence in the republics of Ingushetia, Tatarstan, and Bashkortostan, and were brought to the preliminary investigation authority, where they were charged under Articles 209 (banditry), 279 (armed rebellion), and 317 (attempt on the life of a law enforcement officer) of the Criminal Code of Russia, and a preventive measure in the form of detention was chosen," the publication states.

The specific actions attributed to each of the detainees were not specified by the agency. Article 209 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation provides for up to 20 years of imprisonment, while Articles 279 and 317 provide for life imprisonment.

The objectivity of the investigation into the cases of the alleged militants is in doubt

Recall that in June 2025, a court recognized Chechen resident Vakhtang Khamzatkhanov and Stavropol resident Takhir Begeldiev as participants in the attack on military personnel in the village of Chervlennaya. Begeldiev was sentenced to 21 years in a penal colony, Khamzatkhanov to 24 years in a penal colony.

The investigation of criminal cases regarding participation in hostilities in Chechnya allows law enforcement to earn merit, but raises doubts about the objectivity of the investigation and the guilt of the convicted, noted human rights defender Oleg Orlov (included in the register of foreign agents) and political scientist Ruslan Kutayev (included in the register of foreign agents).

"From the sentences, it follows that they simply consider from the very beginning that some band formations attacked Russian military personnel, which is fair regarding the attack on Dagestan and absolutely unfair to all subsequent armed clashes, events of the second Chechen war. [...] Yes, there were battles, there were armed clashes. They ended a long time ago, and for what purposes to involve all those who met federal troops with weapons in hand is unclear. [...] Just to report, to earn ranks, stars for investigators. There is no other meaning in all this," said Oleg Orlov, in particular.

Criminal cases regarding participation in the bands of Basayev and Khattab are similar and often fabricated, lawyer Narine Ayrapetyan previously stated to the "Caucasian Knot". "The witnesses are the same everywhere. Usually, five witnesses are taken – three secret witnesses and two open ones," she said.

Ayrapetyan emphasized that cases are fabricated even against the innocent. "When people did not participate, but under threat, including torture, other people are forced to testify against them. For example, one of my clients, who is serving a sentence in the Ulyanovsk region, told me that he is being pressured to force him to testify about the events of 1999 against individuals he did not know before at all," the lawyer said.