Oyub Titiev's fellow villagers doubt version of prosecutors

Oyub Titiev, the head of the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial" office in Grozny, led a healthy lifestyle, helped people; he was a Muslim believer and could not be involved in the possession of marijuana. This has been reported today at trial by fellow villagers and rights defenders.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that Oyub Titiev, accused of marijuana possession, has been in custody since January 11. He pleads not guilty and claims that the drugs were planted on him. The head of the HRC "Memorial" office in Grozny won the Václav Havel Prize. At the award ceremony held on October 8, a letter from Oyub Titiev was read out, in which he called the charges against him false and described the atmosphere of fear in Chechnya.

During the today's hearing, the court questioned witnesses for the defence, including Oyub Titiev's fellow villagers. Aishat Magomadova, a neighbour of Oyub Titiev, was the first witness who spoke at the trial. According to her statement, broadcasted by the HRC "Memorial", Oyub Titiev played sports, was on good terms with everyone he talked to, had no bad habits and was a Muslim believer.

The woman also emphasized that Oyub Titiev was "accused of what he did not and could not do." She expressed the opinion that a package had been "planted" on him.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on November 19, 2018 at 12:41 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.