Fugitive ex-MP Gadzhiev sentenced to life in prison for murder

The Supreme Court of Dagestan sentenced former State Duma deputy Magomed Gadzhiev to life imprisonment in absentia. His brother, Akhmed Gadzhiev, the former head of the Makhachkala seaport, received 10 years in a maximum-security penal colony.

According to investigators, in 2011, Magomed Gadzhiev organized the murder of Maksud Sadikov, rector of the Institute of Theology. Investigators also claim that the Gadzhiev brothers participated in a corporate raid on the company "Sudoremont": the owner was forced to transfer 52% of the company's shares to front men. The damage was estimated at 93 million rubles.

Both defendants are currently abroad and are on the international wanted list.

In the fall of 2025, the state seized assets associated with Magomed Gadzhiev and his associates worth over two billion rubles. The court concluded that the legal origin of these funds was unconfirmed. According to the investigation, some of the property was registered to relatives and trusted persons of the former deputy. These included shares in companies, banking assets, land plots, and commercial real estate.

Magomed Gadzhiev represented Dagestan in the State Duma from 2004 to 2019, elected on the United Russia party list. After the war in Ukraine began, he left Russia and created an organization critical of the Russian authorities and in support of Ukraine. The Ministry of Justice later added him to the register of "foreign agents."