Court proceedings have begun in Moscow regarding the attack on “Krokus”

The Second Western District Military Court has begun hearing the case regarding the attack on the Crocus City Hall concert venue. The session is taking place in the appellate chamber of the Moscow City Court behind closed doors.

According to media reports, the prosecutor requested to move the session to a closed format due to security threats for the participants in the process, including the prosecutor himself. The court granted the prosecutor’s request. Journalists and the public were not allowed to attend the session.

It is reported that there are 19 people in the dock, four alleged terrorists and 15 “accomplices”.

The prosecution considers four citizens of Tajikistan – Dalerjon Mirzoev, Saidakrami Rachabalizoda, Fariduni Shamsidin, and Muhammadsobir Faizov – to be the direct perpetrators of the terrorist act. In court, TASS reports, all four fully admitted their guilt and apologized to the victims.

Fifteen people are suspected of aiding the terrorists. Eight of them admitted their guilt, while seven denied the charges.

Khusena Medov and Jabrail Aushov from Ingushetia are accused of converting deactivated weapons into combat-ready ones. Five others – Shahromjon Gadoev, Zubaidullo Ismoilov, Khusein Khamidov, and brothers Umedjon and Mustakim Soliev – are accused of delivering weapons and ammunition to the alleged perpetrators of the attack.

According to the indictment, another four – Yakubdzhoni Davlathon Yusufzoda, Lutfulloi Nazrimad, Jumakhon Kurbunov, and Muhammadzoir Sharifzoda – provided the others with financial support.

A total of more than 2300 people have been recognized as victims in the case of the attack on Crocus City Hall. Of these, 150 victims are participating in the hearings.

It is reported that the case regarding the attack on Crocus will be heard by a panel of three judges, and the case materials consist of more than 470 volumes, as well as results from over 200 different types of examinations concerning the accused.

Recall that on the evening of March 22, several individuals in camouflage opened fire with automatic weapons on people attending a concert by the band Piknik at the Crocus City Hall concert venue in Krasnogorsk, near Moscow. According to eyewitnesses, the shooters also threw Molotov cocktails, causing a fire in the establishment. According to media reports, about 149 people were killed, including children, more than 609 were injured, and one person went missing. According to the Investigative Committee, the damage from the attack is estimated at over 6 billion rubles.

After the attack, the suspects attempted to escape in a vehicle but were detained in the Bryansk region. The investigation believes that the perpetrators of the attack were recruited by the terrorist organization “ISIS – Vilayat Khorasan,” a branch of ISIS in Afghanistan. According to the investigation, after carrying out the attack, the suspects planned to flee to Ukraine, believing that they would not be extradited to Russia from there.

Immediately after the attack, 32-year-old Dalerjon Mirzoev, 30-year-old Saidakram Rachabalizoda, 25-year-old Fariduni Shamsiddin, and 19-year-old Muhammadsobir Faizov were detained.

The Basmanny District Court of Moscow reported that all four admitted their guilt, and as a result, they have been taken into custody for two months.

However, it is unclear under what circumstances they confessed, as videos published on social media show that they were subjected to torture and severe beatings; even during the court hearing, they had bruises and signs of beating on their faces, one had an ear cut off, and another had a blinded eye.

The investigation has charged 27 individuals in connection with the terrorist attack at the Crocus City Hall concert venue in the Moscow region. The majority of them are citizens of Tajikistan.

Also in this case, Muhammadrahim Faizov, the brother of Muhammadsobir Faizov, Umedjon Soliev, and Zubaidullo Ismoilov have been declared wanted. It is believed that they will be extradited from Turkey to Russia.

The Investigative Committee has combined two versions of the incident — the attack by ISIS terrorists and a Ukrainian connection. Investigators and prosecutors claim that the terrorist act was organized by the terrorist organization “ISIS – Vilayat Khorasan” “in the interests of the higher leadership of Ukraine.” At the same time, investigators insist that foreign intelligence services were involved in the organization of the attack.

The Investigative Committee is confident that preparations for the attack at the “Crocus” took several months, with some suspects arriving in Russia from abroad, where they underwent initial training. The exact location of their training has not been disclosed.

The investigation claims that some of the accused also planned to blow up a recreational complex in Kaspiysk, Dagestan, but the attack was prevented. Additionally, some suspects transported weapons and ammunition to Kaspiysk in Dagestan, and from there to the capital, the investigation asserts.