A top Dagestani official has been arrested and accused of kidnapping the son of a prominent businessman, allegedly holding the boy hostage for two months.
Prosecutors said Tuesday that Ruslan Gadzhibekov, the region's first deputy minister for industry and energy, was suspected in the crime and arrested last week along with two accomplices — Magomedtagir Magomedov and Abdulmedzhid Kadiyev, the head of a Kaspysk transport company.
A statement from prosecutors accused the men of kidnapping a boy in the town of Izberbash when he was riding home on his four-wheeler in July.
The boy was freed last week after his father, a well-known entrepreneur in the region, paid the kidnappers the 45 million rubles ($1.39 million) that they demanded in ransom, investigators told RIA Novosti.
Police have opened a case under charges of kidnapping and Gadzhibekov faces up to 12 years in prison if convicted.
The deputy minister is not the first prominent Dagestani official to be arrested in recent months. In June, Makhachkala's mayor Said Amirov was arrested after investigators said he organized the December 2011 murder of Gadzhibekov's brother Arsen, an officer with the region's investigative department.
A Message from The Moscow Times:
Dear readers,
We are facing unprecedented challenges. Russia's Prosecutor General's Office has designated The Moscow Times as an "undesirable" organization, criminalizing our work and putting our staff at risk of prosecution. This follows our earlier unjust labeling as a "foreign agent."
These actions are direct attempts to silence independent journalism in Russia. The authorities claim our work "discredits the decisions of the Russian leadership." We see things differently: we strive to provide accurate, unbiased reporting on Russia.
We, the journalists of The Moscow Times, refuse to be silenced. But to continue our work, we need your help.
Your support, no matter how small, makes a world of difference. If you can, please support us monthly starting from just $2. It's quick to set up, and every contribution makes a significant impact.
By supporting The Moscow Times, you're defending open, independent journalism in the face of repression. Thank you for standing with us.
Remind me later.
