In Abkhazia, all involved in the checkpoint shootout—six attackers and their potential victim—have been arrested
Checkpoint shootout in Abkhazia
All seven participants in the shootout at the “Psou” checkpoint in Abkhazia have been detained. The incident resulted in one fatality and three injuries, with the motive cited as a “property dispute.”
The checkpoint is located on the border with Russia. Georgia and nearly all international communities regard Abkhazia as occupied by Russia, considering this checkpoint illegal and the border not Abkhaz-Russian but Georgian-Russian.
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The minister of Internal Affairs of Abkhazia, Robert Kiut, described how the events unfolded on June 23rd. During the day, two residents of Abkhazia, the Kamliya brothers, were driving from Sukhumi towards the Russian border. They were followed the entire way by another car carrying six individuals with whom the Kamliya brothers had a long-standing dispute over a piece of land.
Approaching the “Psou” checkpoint, the occupants of the second car opened fire directly from inside the vehicle using automatic weapons. They managed to wound one of the Kamliya brothers, while the other brother fired back with a pistol. Shortly after, he managed to cross the border where he was apprehended by Russian law enforcement.
Three bystanders became unintended victims of the shootout, one of whom died.
The assailants switched to another vehicle and fled the scene. However, a few hours later, Abkhazian police apprehended three of them: the Batala and Beslan Godjua brothers, and Konstantin Chagovts.
Two days later, three more suspects were arrested: the Kakaliya brothers Aslan and Beslan, and Igor Chagovets.
The court has imposed pre-trial detention for all the defendants for a period of two months. Given that innocent bystanders were affected by the shootout, Ombudsman Anas Kishmaria has proposed that investigative authorities classify this incident as a terrorist act.
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