Meaningful and merciless: the trial of the riot in the Rostov pre-trial detention center has begun

On July 14, the Southern District Military Court began considering the case of hostage-taking in SIZO No. 1 in Rostov-on-Don in June 2024. Then nine people broke open the window bars in their cell, entered the duty station and captured two employees of the detention center. They demanded to provide them with a car and give them the opportunity to leave freely. As a result of the special forces operation, four criminals were eliminated, the rest ended up in the dock. Taking into account the previous sentences received, among other things, for preparing terrorist attacks, the defendants may already face life imprisonment, the lawyers noted.

What happened in the detention center

Five defendants appeared in the dock at the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don: Daniil Kamnev, Ramzan Albekov, Magomed Alkhanov, Malik Gandaloev and Adam Kodzoev. Depending on their role and degree of involvement, they are charged under articles on attempted escape from custody, hostage-taking, disorganization of the detention facility, participation in the activities of a terrorist organization, attempted terrorist attack and preparation for participation in an illegal armed formation, the court's press service told Izvestia.

On June 16, 2024, nine people held in SIZO-1, armed with knives and sharpeners, took two FSIN officers hostage. The attackers demanded to provide them with a car, to allow them to leave the territory of the detention center freely, and then to leave Russia. They claimed to be members of the Islamic State (IS, a terrorist organization banned in the Russian Federation).

It later became clear that five of the criminals who staged the riot were considered "particularly dangerous" — they had previously been involved in terrorist activities. So, three of them planned to blow up the Supreme Court building in Karachay-Cherkessia in 2022. They purchased bomb components, firearms, a submachine gun, and two Makarov pistols. Then the FSB of Russia prevented the terrorist attack, and the criminals were sentenced to 18 years in prison for preparing it. It was after this verdict that they tried to escape from the Rostov pre-trial detention center.

At the same time, as a source in law enforcement agencies told Izvestia, the criminals had been preparing to take hostages for several months. To do this, they gradually loosened the bars on the windows, knocked them out and got out into the courtyard. After that, they entered the room of the duty station and took hostages.

As a result of the special operation, four criminals were eliminated, the rest were detained. The employees of the detention center who were being held hostage were not injured.

"The best isolation ward"

Just a few days before the seizure, on June 10, 2024, the Main Directorate of the Federal Penitentiary Service of Russia for the Rostov region published a photo report on the work of SIZO-1 in Rostov-on-Don.

"The security service in SIZO-1 of the Federal Penitentiary Service of Russia in the Rostov region has been recognized as the best among all pre—trial detention facilities in the Rostov region for the past few years," the publication noted.

It was reported that security personnel do not allow suspects, accused and convicted persons to escape, are ready for stressful situations and loads, and are vigilant and incorruptible.

"The protected facility is under round-the—clock surveillance, various video surveillance systems and modern engineering and technical security equipment are used," the message stated.

But, as Alexey Melnikov, a member of the Human Rights Council under the President of the Russian Federation (HRC) and the National Human Rights Committee, told Izvestia, at the time of the seizure, there was a shortage in SIZO-1 — there were 200-400 more people there than they should be.

"Overexploitation is a systemic problem, as is the shortage of staff," the expert told Izvestia. — Collectively, this leads to such emergencies. If there are few employees, and the accused or convicted are more than the norm, it is difficult for employees to keep track of everyone.

After the events, Dmitry Bezrukikh, head of the Rostov Federal Penitentiary Service, and Vasily Gordeev, his first deputy, resigned of their own accord. In addition, four people (including Roman Zabolotnev, acting head of SIZO No. 1) were dismissed following an internal audit by the FSIN commission. Another 16 employees were disciplined.

Who helped the invaders

Another person who appeared in the dock on July 14 is Malik Gandaloev. He was being held in a pre-trial detention center on charges of participating in the activities of the Islamic State and storing explosives. In July 2024, that is, a month after the attack, the court sentenced him to 20 years in a penal colony on the original charge.

The investigation found out that Gandaloev and two other people had conspired to join ISIS in 2023. In Astrakhan, he bought electric detonators and transported them to Ingushetia. There, Gandaloev made an explosive device and swore allegiance to one of the leaders of the local branch of the Islamic State. Security officials discovered the explosive device on March 22, 2023 and seized it. The next day, Gandaloev was detained. He admitted his guilt.

Another surviving participant in the seizure, Daniil Kamnev, was held in a pre—trial detention center, as he had previously pleaded guilty to a criminal case of preparing a terrorist attack in Kislovodsk, Stavropol Territory.

On July 7 of this year, it became known that the Leninsky District Court of Rostov-on-Don arrested the head of a local Muslim religious organization, Ahmed Abusupyanov, who was negotiating with hostage-takers in the Rostov pre-trial detention center. He is charged with Part 2 of Article 213 (hooliganism) and Part 2 of Article 282.2 (organization of activities of an extremist organization) of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

According to the law enforcement agencies of the region, the mufti took part in the activities of an international religious association recognized as extremist in Russia. According to investigators, he also promoted intolerance towards representatives of other faiths, as well as Muslims of other faiths, and provoked conflicts with the official Muslim clergy.

According to Alexey Melnikov, Mufti Akhmed Abusupyanov was previously close to the leadership of the Rostov SIZO-1.

— There is accurate information that he repeatedly came to the detention center and met with the accused, — said the activist. — He had the opportunity to deliver packages. It is possible that these packages could contain banned literature, which he could use to influence the minds of the radical defendants.

What will change after the emergency

In the case of hostage-taking in the Rostov SIZO-1, we are talking about the most serious crimes, some of which carry penalties up to life imprisonment, Alexey Gavrishev, head of AVG Legal, told Izvestia. Such formations include, in particular, hostage-taking with the use of weapons by a group of people by prior agreement and with the threat of murder, the lawyer said.

— If the court appoints a life sentence for the defendants, then the previously appointed terms will lose their significance — the punishment will be replaced by a more severe one, — said the lawyer. — That is, the second sentence can actually reset the first one: a life sentence consumes any previously appointed term.

According to Alexey Gavrishev, in practice, courts in such cases assess not only the composition of the crime, but also the behavior of the accused during the investigation, the presence of a real threat to the lives of hostages, as well as whether they were harmed.

"But even the fact of an armed seizure and resistance in itself gives grounds for the most severe punishment," the lawyer noted.

On December 1, 2026, a law comes into force stating that central detention facilities will be partially transferred to the FSB, Georgy Volkov, deputy chairman of the Public Chamber for Security and Public Control, reminded Izvestia.

"This law was initiated, among other things, following the Rostov incident, in order to prevent a repeat of such emergencies," he said.

According to the results of the investigation, it is still unclear where the defendants received the prohibited items — mobile phones, knives and clothing with terrorist symbols, Eva Merkacheva, a member of the Human Rights Council, told Izvestia.

— Now it is extremely important to understand what kind of admission channel it was and why the pre—trial detention center, which was considered a leader in security, turned out to be completely unsafe, - she said. — If these items were handed over by prison staff or guards, then this is not just an official offense, since we are talking about helping people accused of terrorism. If these are not employees, then how were these items transferred and why did they not know about it?

Eva Merkacheva added that the emergency in the Rostov pre-trial detention center came as a shock not only to the staff, but also to other defendants and their relatives.

"People wrote to me because they were afraid that something would happen to their relatives in this detention center," she said.

In the hostage-taking trial, all five defendants were represented by lawyers by appointment. They declined to comment.