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Sentence imposed over a participant of a terrorist community operating in a penal colony in the Republic of Kalmykia

The evidence collected by the Main Investigative Department over the North Caucasian Federal District of the Investigative Committee of Russia in cooperation with the Central Office of the Federal Security Service of Russia, Kalmykia Republican Department of the Federal Security Service of Russia, Main Directorate for Combating Extremism of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia and Federal Penitentiary Service of Russia was found by court to be sufficient to sentence resident of the Republic of Kalmykia Savely Ochirov. He was found guilty of committing a crime under Part 2 of Article 205.4 of the Criminal Code of Russia (participation in a terrorist community).

Investigation and the court established that in the middle of 2013, Shahban Gasanov, born in the Republic of Dagestan, serving a sentence for illegal traffic of firearms in the Penal Colony No. 2013 of the Kalmykia Directorate of the Federal Penitentiary Service of Russia, had created a terrorist community in the said colony in order to promote, justify, and support terrorism. After being released from the Federal Penal Colony No. 2015 in 2015, residing in the Republic of Dagestan, Gasanov declared himself as an amir, that is, a leader of one of illegal armed formations operating in the Republic of Dagestan. He was subsequently eliminated on March 31, 2015 at encroachment on life of law enforcement officers in Khasavurt.

From the middle of 2013 to December 16, 2019 over 100 convicted persons from the penal colony became members of the criminal community supporting its aims and goals. In October 2015, Ochirov, directly, while serving a sentence in the Federal Penal Colony No. 2015 of the Federal Penitentiary Service of Russia in the Republic of Kalmykia for the crimes related to secret theft of other people's property committed by him, agreed to participate in the terrorist community and voluntarily joined it.

Ochirov and other persons were active participants of the terrorist community, followed it general principles and rules of conduct they formed as a result of their false understanding of their religious supremacy over other members of the civil society, learnt Arabic language, received ideological training, attended lectures delivered by members of the terrorist community possessing relevant knowledge of literature found by court to be extremist materials.

On March 15, 2019 Ochirov left the terrorist community due to being released from the penal colony upon serving the term of punishment assigned to him by the court. 

Over 40 persons apart from Ochirov are also involved in the case, including the head of the colony, Pavel Bataev, and his former deputy, Artur Tsamaev.

During a search carried out in the Federal Penal Colony No. 2 of the Federal Penitentiary Service of Russia in the Republic of Kalmykia, extremist literature and symbols of the Islamic State terrorist organization banned in the Russian Federation were found and seized in one of its premises.

The court sentenced Ochirov to 5 years of imprisonment in a special regime colony.