First criminal case in North Caucasus against someone who falsely accused family member who fled
For the first time in the North Caucasus, a criminal case has been opened against a person who falsely accused a relative of a crime in order to bring said relative back to the family after they fled.
According to law enforcement agencies, the suspect is a 43-year-old resident of the Ingush village of Ekazhevo who, in November 2024, told police that his 20-year-old nephew had stolen ₽200,000 ($2,500). The suspect’s name has not been released.
According to the official version, at the time of the accusation, the young man who had fled was in Moscow. The suspect told the police that his nephew had allegedly stolen a large sum of money. Later, investigators say, the man admitted that the accusation was fabricated. He explained that he wanted to involve law enforcement in the search for the young man who had left home.
The suspect has been charged with knowingly making a false report to law enforcement, which carries a penalty of a fine of up to ₽300,000 ($3,700), compulsory or corrective labour, or imprisonment for up to three years. The suspect has been placed under travel restrictions pending investigation. The whereabouts and fate of his nephew have not been officially reported.
Human rights defenders have noted that in recent years the practice of filing false police reports has become one way of exerting pressure on people from the North Caucasus, especially women and young people who leave their families due to the threat of violence or forced marriage. However, until now, there have been no known cases in which those making such accusations were held criminally liable.
The first documented case of a false accusation against someone from the North Caucasus who had left their family occurred in January 2023, involving 18-year-old Leila Gireeva. Originally from Ingushetia, Gireeva had been hiding from relatives in a temporary apartment in St Petersburg provided by human rights defenders. From there, she was taken to a police station on theft charges. According to rights groups, the initiator of the complaint may have been her uncle, a police major. After being detained, Gireeva agreed to return home, saying that conflict with her family and the criminal case ‘would not allow her to live in peace’.
Since then, the practice has quickly spread. In June 2023, 20-year-old Selima Ismailova from Chechnya, who was trying to leave Russia, was detained at Moscow’s Vnukovo Airport. Her relatives had filed a theft report claiming she had stolen ₽85,000 ($1,000) from a mattress, which became the formal reason for her detention.
The most high-profile case was that of 26-year-old Seda Suleymanova. In late August 2023, she was detained in St Petersburg and handed over to Chechen representatives, who took her to Grozny. According to rights groups, Suleymanova had fled Chechnya due to the threat of forced marriage. The formal basis for her detention was an accusation that she had stolen jewellery worth ₽150,000 ($1,900). Nothing has been heard about her since September 2023. Human rights organisations believe she may have been the victim of an ‘honour killing’.
Luiza Mchedlishvili
