Trial Summary

• The attacks were allowed because they knew Achimez Gochiyayev was walking in the mountains, but they did not catch him.
• The defendant Kharatokov stated that he was taken to the forest, tied to a tree near a freshly dug hole, and was promised he would be left there if he did not sign all the offered papers.
• Ramazan Gochiyayev, a namesake of Achimez Gochiyayev, was the last to speak.

Ramazan Gochiyayev's Statement

• "The prosecution tried so hard to accuse us," he began. "They said that everything started for us back in 1997, that we allegedly called on the people to overthrow the government. And where were you looking all these years? After all, I only visited the mosque three times, and the FSB already knew about it."
• He further stated that he learned about Achimez Gochiyayev's appearance in Karachay-Cherkessia from the media, while law enforcement agencies did not even consider taking any action.
• The imam of the Storozhevaya village concluded that he expected nothing from the jury trial and agreed to it only because he wanted as many ordinary people as possible to know the truth—that they were being tried for someone else's sins.

Conclusion of the Trial

• Upon completion of the defendants' "final word," Judge Alexander Polivanov delivered a parting speech and explained the procedure for filling out the questionnaire to the jury.
• There were over a hundred questions, and the discussion was unusually stormy.
• Since there was no complete agreement on any single point, a vote was held on all issues.
• Despite the disagreements, all three defendants were found guilty on all counts of the charges by an overwhelming majority of the jurors' votes.
• The sentence for the Wahhabis will be handed down next week.

ALEKSANDRA LARINTSEVA, Pyatigorsk