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Dalerdzhon Mirzoyev, a suspect in Friday’s Crocus City Hall shooting, sits in a glass cage in the Basmanny District Court in Moscow, Russia on Sunday. Photo: AP
WorldRussia & Central Asia

3 of 4 suspects charged in Russia concert hall attack plead guilty during court hearing

  • The court ordered that the men, all of whom are citizens of Tajikistan, be held in pre-trial custody until May 22
  • The hearing came as Russia observed a national day of mourning, following the Friday attack on the suburban Crocus City Hall that killed at least 137 people
Russia
Associated Press
Associated Press
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Three of the four suspects charged with carrying out the Moscow concert hall attack that killed more than 130 people admitted guilt in a Russian court on Sunday.

Moscow’s Basmanny District Court formally charged Dalerdzhon Mirzoyev, 32; Saidakrami Rachabalizoda, 30; Mukhammadsobir Faizov, 19; and Shamsidin Fariduni, 25, with committing a group terrorist attack resulting in the death of others. The offence carries a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

The court ordered that the men, all of whom are citizens of Tajikistan, be held in pre-trial custody until May 22.

Shamsidin Fariduni, a suspect in the Crocus City Hall shooting, sits in a glass enclosure before a court hearing at the Basmanny district court in Moscow, Russia on Sunday. Photo: Reuters

Mirzoyev, Rachabalizoda and Shamsidin Fariduni all admitted guilt after being charged. The fourth, Faizov, was brought to court directly from a hospital in a wheelchair and sat with his eyes closed throughout the proceedings. He was attended by doctors while in court, where he wore a hospital gown and trousers and was seen with multiple cuts.

The other three suspects appeared in court heavily bruised with swollen faces amid reports in Russian media that they were tortured during interrogation by the security services.

One suspect, Saidakrami Rachabalizoda, had a heavily bandaged ear. Russian media reported on Saturday that one of the suspects had his ear cut off during interrogation. Neither the report nor the videos that purported to show this occurring could be independently verified.

Russia’s opposition blasts Putin’s broken security promises

The hearing came as Russia observed a national day of mourning, following the attack Friday on the suburban Crocus City Hall concert venue that killed at least 137 people.
The attack, which has been claimed by an affiliate of Islamic State, is the deadliest on Russian soil in years.
Russian authorities arrested the four suspected attackers on Saturday, with seven more people detained on suspicion of involvement in the attack, Russian President Vladimir Putin said in an address to the nation Saturday night. He claimed they were captured while fleeing to Ukraine, something that Kyiv firmly denied.

Family and friends of those still missing waited for news of their loved ones as Russia observed a day of national mourning on Sunday.

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