A Sochi court has remanded seven Abkhazians — Almaskhan Ardzinba, Khyna Dumaa, Eshsou Kakaliya, Efrem and Kan Kvarchiya, Garri Kokaia, and David Nakopiya — into pre-trial detention in absentia. Subsequently, the Sukhumi (Sukhum) City Court placed all seven under house arrest for two months.
The seven defendants are accused of involvement in the scuffle and subsequent deportation of Russian strategists working in Sukhumi (Sukhum) during the November 2025 local elections.
The incident occurred on 5 November on Abazinskaya Street at an office rented by the Russian political strategists. That day, opposition members arrived demanding an explanation for the grounds on which Russian citizens Ivan Reva, Pavel Timofeev, and Dmitry Budykin were working in Abkhazia. They then summoned police and state security officers and demanded a full-scale investigation into their activities.
Following this, the three Russians were expelled from Abkhazia. Once back in Russia, they contacted the police.
Based on their testimony, a criminal case was opened against the Abkhazian opposition figures on charges of grand larceny totalling over ₽1.9 million ($25,000). The Investigative Department of the Sochi City Police Department has also stated that the crime was committed with the threat of violence dangerous to life and health, committed by a group of individuals acting in concert, using an object used as a weapon.
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Based on the decision by the Sochi court, all seven Abkhazians face immediate arrest if they cross the border into Russia.
An investigation was also conducted in Abkhazia against the Russians. According to the final decision by the Sukhumi City Court, all three were found guilty of the ‘intentional destruction of printed materials related to the elections’. They were also found guilty of producing, distributing, and posting campaign materials in violation of Abkhazian legislation. They were each fined ₽1,800 ($25).
According to local opposition members, this was not a fair punishment because the activities of the Russian delegation were not adequately assessed. According to Akhra Bzhaniya, head of the public organisation Akhyatsa, their goal was to change the constitutional order.
‘There is a proven way to change the constitutional order in any country: change the ideology, bring the right people to power, and abolish the constitution. I’m afraid we’re going through this scenario now’, he said at a press conference on 29 January.
