Ingush activist Zakri Bopkhoev sentenced

In Zheleznovodsk, the City Court has found Zakri Bopkhoev guilty of attacking two law enforcers and sentenced him to six months of imprisonment, but released him taking into account the period of time the defendant had spent in custody. This is the 31st verdict in a case on the rally in Magas.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on March 26, 2019, residents of Ingushetia continued their protest rally in Magas without a sanction from the authorities. In the morning on March 27, protesters clashed with the police. Starting since the early April of 2019, mass arrests of oppositionists took place in Ingushetia. According to the calculations run by "Caucasian Knot", at least 96 activists were prosecuted.

Today, the Zheleznovodsk City Court has found Zakri Bopkhoev guilty of throwing a half-empty plastic bottle at a fighter of the National Guard of Russia during a rally in Magas and kicking another law enforcer on a shield. The activist has been sentenced to six months of imprisonment in a common-security penal colony. However, Zakri Bopkhoev has been released in the courtroom, because the court took into account the period of time spent by the defendant in a SIZO (pre-trial prison) and under house arrest. The activist admitted his guilt only in the very actions against the policemen. At the same time, he denies any political motive of his actions, that is, an alleged "political enmity" towards Yunus-Bek Evkurov, the then leader of Ingushetia.

This is already the 31st verdict of guilty in the case on the Ingush rally, the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial" reports.

This article was originally published on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’ on December 7, 2020 at 05:00 pm MSK. To access the full text of the article, click here.