The Elbrus District Court of the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic has convicted 10 local residents of extremism for participating in Sharia patrols, news agency TASS reported. The defendants were sentenced to varying prison terms. The court gave the organizer 7.5 years in a strict-regime penal colony, while the remaining nine defendants received terms ranging from 3.5 to 4.5 years in a general-regime colony.
In July 2024, the Ministry of Internal Affairs reported the detention in the republic of 10 members of the extremist community, who were aged between 26 and 54. The group leader was identified as a 40-year-old resident of the city of Tyrnyauz.
Extremist Patrols and Violent Proceedings
According to investigators, the group organized Sharia patrols from March 2023 to August 2024. While promoting religious superiority, they applied measures against people whose behavior did not conform to their ideas of normal conduct.
Using sticks and other objects, members conducted proceedings against individuals who drank alcohol or were suspected of using drugs. The patrol members beat 14 local residents with sticks.
The sentences follow earlier court rulings in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic, where 17 other local residents previously received guilty verdicts for participating in Sharia patrols.
