Shamil Akhaev, a 44-year-old lawyer who had lost contact on August 10, has been found dead. Media outlets and online groups tracking the search reported the news on August 15. His body was discovered in a wooded area.
Akhaev disappeared after a trip to Repino. According to published reports, he had planned to meet a friend at a restaurant prior to that. Relatives, law enforcement, volunteers, and the "LizaAlert" search-and-rescue squad had been searching for him for several days.
Preliminary data suggests the cause of death may have been strangulation, as characteristic marks were found on the body. The exact circumstances of the incident have not yet been established; final conclusions will be drawn following forensic analysis and investigative procedures.
Shortly before his disappearance, according to his loved ones, Akhaev spoke of threats he linked to his professional work. Before losing contact, he told his mother, "Mom, they’re going to kill me." He then added, "I probably won't see you again; let's say goodbye."
The lawyer's mother also said that he had recently been deeply worried about work-related problems. According to her, Akhaev had a client whom he described as a crime boss.
It is not yet known whether the lawyer's death is linked to his professional activities. Nor has it been established what happened to Akhaev after his trip to Repino or under what circumstances he ended up in the wooded area.
The "LizaAlert" search squad expressed its condolences to Shamil Akhaev's family, friends, and colleagues. Reports of his death also included the traditional Muslim phrase: "Inna lillahi wa inna ilayhi raji'un" (Indeed we belong to Allah, and indeed to Him we will return).
Akhaev's mother plans to bury her son in Chechnya. She is currently arranging the burial and handling matters related to transporting the body. "I am currently sorting out the burial arrangements. I will likely take him to Chechnya," she told 78.ru.
Shamil Akhaev qualified as a lawyer in December 2009 and was a member of the Nevsky Bar Association in St. Petersburg.
According to *Kommersant*, in March 2025, Akhaev represented the relatives of Igor Savin and his bodyguard Kirill Ugolnikov—victims in the case against Vladimir Kulibaba, a former advisor to the head of the Russian Olympic Committee. A jury found Kulibaba guilty of orchestrating a double murder in 1993, and the court subsequently sentenced him to ten years in a penal colony.
After the verdict was announced, Akhaev described the court's decision as a "half-measure." He also pointed out that defendants and their defense lawyers usually receive far more public attention, while the victims' relatives and their representatives remain in the shadows.
The lawyer had previously participated in other high-profile legal disputes in St. Petersburg. In 2010, he represented archaeologists working at the site of the proposed "Okhta Center" construction project. Following a legal battle with the Okhta business and public center, the court awarded the archaeologists 11 million rubles in damages and outstanding contractual payments.
Another high-profile case involved a dispute over the 2011 municipal elections in the "Krasnenkaya Rechka" district. Akhaev represented St. Petersburg resident Pavel Eremeev, who sought to overturn the results of the vote in which Valentina Matviyenko was elected as a local council deputy. The legal proceedings attracted attention due to allegations of irregularities in the organization of the election.
