Chechen convicted for murdering Boris Nemtsov will serve rest of his sentence in Chechnya

Khamzat Bakhaev, a Chechen native convicted of participating in the murder of Russian opposition politician Boris Nemtsov in 2015, has been granted a transfer from a penal colony in Russia’s Kirov region to a similar institution in Chechnya.

According to court records, Bakhaev requested the transfer in  order to be closer to his relatives, but initially, Russia’s Federal Service for the Execution of Punishments refused the transfer.

Bakhaev then appealed the decision, after which a local court recognised that being in a penal colony in Kirov region limited Bakhev’s ability to maintain personal ties with his wife, children, and siblings, and ordered the Federal Penitentiary Service to reconsider the decision.

The court also ordered compensation of ₽5,000 ($60) in Bakhaev’s favour. His additional claim for compensation in the amount of ₽100,000 ($1,200) for the delay in the execution of the judgement was rejected.

Based on the court’s decision, Bakhaev will be transferred to the IK-2 penitentiary colony in the village of Chernokozovo in Chechnya.

Nemtsov was shot dead on 27 February 2015 just outside the Kremlin in Moscow. His murder has become one of the most high-profile political crimes in modern Russia.

Many Western leaders and international organisations condemned the crime and have called for a transparent and comprehensive investigation.

Five people were detained as part of the murder investigation: Zaur Dadaev, Temirlan Eskerkhanov, Khamzat Bakhaev, and brothers Anzor and Shadid Gubashev.

The investigation into Nemtsov’s murder revealed a so-called ‘Chechen trail’, whereby most of the accused had ties to Chechnya. Dadaev, whom the investigation recognised as the direct perpetrator of the murder, had previously served in the North battalion of the Russian Interior Ministry’s internal troops stationed in Chechnya.

Bakhaev was found guilty of complicity in Nemtsov’s murder after the court found that he had provided accomplices with information about the politician’s possible routes of travel and provided logistical support. In July 2017, the Moscow District Military Court sentenced Bakhaev to 11 years imprisonment in a strict regime colony.

However, Nemtsov’s family believed that Bakhaev had nothing to do with the politician’s murder. In their view, the prosecution’s case, built on Bakhaev’s phone bills, only indirectly showed his connection to the other defendants — and did not indicate at all that he could have known about the impending murder.

Another person convicted in the Nemtsov murder case, Eskerkhanov, went to war against Ukraine last year, having signed a contract with the Defence Ministry.

In addition, the names of Ruslan Mukhudinov and Artur and Ruslan Geremeyev, also linked to the Chechen security services, were also mentioned in the case. Mukhudinov, a former officer of the Chechen North Battalion, was put on the international wanted list as the alleged organiser and mastermind of the murder. The investigation has never established his whereabouts over the years.

Ruslan Geremeev is a close associate of Chechen Head Ramzan Kadyrov. The investigation was unable to question him or his nephew Artur during the investigation — law enforcement officers claimed that they were not allowed to open the door when they tried to deliver the summons. The court also failed to ensure their appearance. After that, the Geremeevs disappeared.

According to an investigation by the Russian independent publication Mediazona, Kadyrov or his closest subordinates may have been involved in Nemtsov’s murder.

Five Chechen-born men sentenced for murder of Boris Nemtsov

On 13 July, Moscow City District Court concluded the trial of five Chechen-born men accused of murdering Russian opposition politician Boris Nemtsov. All were found guilty and sentenced to 11–19 years in prison. According to Russian state news agency RIA Novosti, Zaur Dadayev, the direct exe…

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