Grozny-sought Chechen athlete to be extradited from Belarus to Russia

Belarus intends to extradite a Chechen athlete, whom Grozny authorities seek to bring to trial, to Russia, as human rights activists put it, under false charges.

“Documents are being prepared for Murad Amriev’s forcible deportation to Russia. He will be deported within 24 hours, either this evening or early on 9 June,” Yuri Pilkevich, an official spokesman for the Gomel District Administration, told the tut.by news portal.

Meanwhile, according to the Novaya Gazeta newspaper, the police officials in Chechnya declared a blood feud against the Amriev family. So, if Murad Amriev is deported to Chechnya, he could be subjected to torture and even be killed.

The whole story began back in 2013, when Murad Amriev was detained and tortured at a police department in Chechnya. The young man personally wasn’t facing any charges. The police demanded that his elder brother return back to Chechnya from Germany. The Grozny police chief, Magomed Dashayev, accused Amriev’s brother of an attempt on his life, though he was unable to act on it because Amriev’s brother lived in Germany and was beyond his jurisdiction.

Upon release, Murad Amriev immediately left Chechnya for Russia, and then joined his brother in Germany. He managed to build a successful sports career in three years and even became a world champion in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA).  

The criminal case against Amriev had been closed in Russia, but only up until February 2017, when Chechen law-enforcers placed him on the federal wanted list again – of which Amriev was unaware. In May 2017, he traveled to Russia to get a new passport and was arrested in Bryansk.

Following the reports on Murad Amriev’s arrest, the Chechen MoI leadership dispatched a special tactics team to Bryansk, in order to escort Amriev back to Chechnya. However, they failed to do it, since Amriev had been released shortly after his interrogation and had immediately left for Belarus, accompanied by his lawyer.

The International Committee for the Prevention of Torture claims Amriev’s health and life are at risk.