Resident of Dargo village kidnapped in Chechnya

On March 18, Lechi Mitkuev, a resident of mountain Dargo village, Vedeno District of Chechnya, was kidnapped by unidentified power agents. Local residents believe that the victim is kept in the base of one of subdivisions of local power agencies deployed in the neighbouring Nozhay-Yurt District.

"According to the information we received, on March 18, in Dargo village, Vedeno District, armed persons in camouflage uniform, presumably, fighters of one of the power subdivisions deployed in the neighbouring Nozhay-Yurt District, violently took away a young man named Lechi Matkuev right from his house. Nobody of the kidnappers found time to tell the parents of the young man where and why he was taken away," the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent was informed at the Information Centre of the Board of Nongovernmental Organizations (NGOs' Informcentre) of Chechnya.

As of today, nothing is known about Mitkuev's further destiny.

"Local residents believe that he was taken out to Nozhay-Yurt and is still illegally kept there. His parents fear to address to the militia or other power bodies, being afraid of possible negative consequences," the Board has reported.

"Moreover, it turns out that the non-sanctioned seizure of Lechi Mitkuev is far from being the first case of this sort in Dargo from the end of February till today. During a couple of these weeks, over twenty persons were illegally detained and kidnapped there. We know surnames of all of them," the Informcentre has reported.

They have added that unknown persons illegally detained even young girls. "The aim of these actions is absolutely unclear. Dargo is a small village, and the reasons of this sort of pressing on its residents are unknown," people in the Board say.

According to an employee of this NGO, power agents used to keep the kidnapped Dargo residents from three to fifteen days. Nobody of them, being released after kidnapping or non-sanctioned arrest ever told what happened to them there.