North Ossetia’s Head confirms his son was involved in contentious traffic stop

On Wednesday, North Ossetian Head Sergei Menyailo confirmed that his son (also named Sergei Menyailo) was in a widely circulated video of a confrontation with a traffic police officer.

In the video of the confrontation, Menyailo’s son threatens the police officer and says his father is the head of the republic. He also mentions that his brother works for Russia’s Federal Security Service (FSB), adding that he could ‘mess you up right here’.

Both Menyailo’s son and his daughter-in-law continued to belittle the officer and refused to comply with orders.

The video generated controversy among the republic’s populace, with some taking to social media to complain about Menyailo’s son’s behaviour and his use of family connections in an alleged attempt to avoid punishment for violating traffic laws.

Others mocked Menyailo’s son for reportedly sitting in the back of the car while his wife was driving.

In a video shared on his personal Telegram account, Menyailo acknowledged that the incident had occurred, but stated that it had happened some months ago, and that the video was only circulated now because some unnamed people ‘want to benefit from it’.

Menyailo also claimed the dispute was settled on the spot, and that there were no further repercussions for the officers involved. He added that the circulated video had been clipped in order to show his son and daughter-in-law in a worse light.

Using a double-entendre, Menyailo rejected the assertion that his son was ‘sitting in the rear’, saying it ‘just could not be’ that his son, ‘a military officer serving from the first days of the [full-scale war in Ukraine]’ would not be in the front.

The account was corroborated by Menyailo’s daughter-in-law, who similarly claimed the video was clipped and that Menyailo’s son could not comment on the incident due to his position in the military.

Shortly after the beginning of Russia’s full-scale invasion in 2022, Menyailo reportedly visited an undisclosed location in Ukraine to ‘support’ North Ossetian troops taking part in operations in the area. In the video, which some insinuated was not really filmed in Ukraine, a soldier can be heard saying that Menyailo’s son is fighting on the front.

Neither the veracity of the video nor the actual participation of Menyailo’s son in the full-scale war can be independently verified.

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OC MediaElizaveta Chukharova