Lawyers for activist from Dagestan Eduard Atayev have been unable to obtain the full text of the verdict for more than a month and therefore were unable to file an appeal. In November 2023, he was sentenced to six years and five months in prison. Atayev did not admit guilt - in court he told how during the search the security forces planted drugs, he alleged torture and gross violations during the investigation.
Eduard Atayev and his defenders believe that he is being persecuted because of his political activities, and that the criminal case is fabricated. The activist stated at the court hearing that he connected his persecution with his civil and political position and opposition to corruption schemes in the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Dagestan. Ataev was a representative of the Dagestani movement “Voice”, head of the representative office of the “Parnas” party, coordinator of the local headquarters of Alexei Navalny, and an outspoken critic of Russia’s actions in Ukraine.
The activist was found guilty under articles of possession of weapons and explosives (Part 1 of Article 222.1 of the Criminal Code) and drugs (Article 228 of the Criminal Code). His assistant Murad Manapov was forced to leave Russia after pressure from the security forces.
