06:52, 10 October 2026

The lawyer excluded the assignment of recidivist status to Edgar Abukhba.

Amina Bikbova, Edgar Abukhba. Illustration created by "Caucasian Knot" using AI in the Copilot program.

The court in the case of the murder of Russian tourist Amina Bikbova will not consider Abkhazian resident Edgar Abukhba as a recidivist, since he was detained for a previous crime while still a minor. The father of the deceased reported that the authorities of the Orenburg region did not provide assistance to their family.

As reported by "Caucasian Knot", on September 27, it became known that Abkhazian resident Edgar Abukhba was detained on suspicion of murdering 26-year-old tourist Amina Bikbova from the Orenburg region, who had not been in contact with her relatives for three days. According to the investigation, Abukhba confessed to the murder of the girl. On September 29, the Gagra court arrested Abukhba.

In July 2019, Abukhba had already committed a crime against a Russian tourist: he took her to an abandoned building in Sukhum, where he raped and beat her, and then stole her phone, money, and jewelry. In 2021, he was sentenced to nine years in prison, and in February 2024, he was released. After Abukhba's release, the Russian Foreign Ministry warned about the risks of traveling to Abkhazia.

Edgar Abukhba may be sentenced to life imprisonment for the murder of Amina Bikbova, a lawyer from the NGO "Center for Humanitarian Programs" Said Gezerdava told a correspondent of "Caucasian Knot".

"Part one of Article 99 of the Abkhazian Criminal Code ('Murder') provides for a maximum punishment of 12 years in a strict regime. The second part is significantly harsher – it can impose a sentence of 8 to 15 years of imprisonment, or life imprisonment, or the death penalty. However, there is a nuance regarding the terms of imprisonment. 'On paper' it may be 12 and 15 years, but considering that, for example, he is sentenced to 12 years in a strict regime, in fact, taking into account the calculation of terms under our legislation, he will serve only eight years," he said.

According to the investigation, on September 23, around midnight, Edgar Abukhba, while at a house on Armenian Street in the village of Psakhara in the Gagra district, killed Amina Bikbova during the consumption of alcoholic beverages. In the presence of witnesses, Abukhba stated that he was alone with the girl in rented accommodation and during a quarrel strangled her. On the morning of September 24, the man borrowed a car from an acquaintance, loaded Bikbova's body, and took it to the Bzyb Gorge area, where he planned to drown it, but failed and left the body wrapped in a blanket in the bushes, discarding the tourist's belongings. He was detained on September 27, and on October 2, the suspect was charged with intentional murder. On October 7, it became known that the criminal case was transferred from the district prosecutor's office to the investigative department of the General Prosecutor's Office of Abkhazia.

The lawyer emphasized that Abukhba will not be considered a recidivist, despite the fact that he was previously detained as a minor in a case of attempted murder of another tourist.

"Recidivism does not occur. In the Abkhazian Criminal Code, a conviction for a crime committed before the age of 18 is not taken into account when recognizing recidivism. This is point 'b' of part 4 of Article 17 ('Recidivism of Crimes'). It states that when recognizing recidivism, 'convictions for crimes committed by a person under the age of eighteen' are not taken into account," Gezerdava explained.

At the same time, according to the lawyer, the judges he spoke with stated that the court would have information about this crime, and this would affect the sentence length.

The administration of the Gagra district promised assistance and support to the relatives of the deceased. The girl's body was sent to Russia.

The father of Amina Bikbova told a correspondent of "Caucasian Knot" on October 9 that the authorities of Abkhazia helped their family in transporting Amina's body, which was buried on October 2. According to him, the authorities of the Orenburg region provided no assistance.

It should be noted that conflicts involving tourists regularly occur in Abkhazia. For instance, on August 2, a resident of Cherkessk who came for vacation was attacked in Sukhum and was hospitalized with a concussion and other injuries.

On August 26, a conflict occurred at Lake Ritsa between tourists and local residents. According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Abkhazia, two tourists sustained soft tissue injuries and a concussion; three residents of Abkhazia were taken to the police station.

The most well-known cases of abductions of foreign citizens in Abkhazia and information about their investigation have been compiled by "Caucasian Knot" in the reference "Main about the abductions of foreign citizens in Abkhazia".

Translated automatically via OpenAI from https://www.kavkaz-uzel.eu/articles/427349