Statement of Gochiyayev Achemez Shagabanovich

April 24, 2002

My name is Gochiyayev Achemez Shagabanovich. I was born on September 28, 1970, in the city of Karachaevsk, KChR (Karachay-Cherkess Republic) (formerly Stavropol Krai).

• Until the age of 16, I lived in Karachaevsk, graduated from secondary school No. 3, and lived at the address: Kurdzhieva St. 14, apt. 34.
• After finishing school, I went to study in Moscow; there I enrolled in PTU (Vocational School) No. 67, which was located at the "Pervomayskaya" station.
• A year later, I graduated from the school and was drafted into the army.
• In the Strategic Missile Forces, I underwent training in Belarus for six months, and served the rest in Siberia, Altai Krai, Pervomayskiy settlement.
• After the army, I stayed at home for about two years, then returned to Moscow, worked, and tried to engage in commerce.
• In 1996, I got married and received a residence permit; I am registered at: Strogino, Marshal Katukov St. 6, apt. 188.
• In 1997, I opened my own firm, engaged in the construction of cottages and trade. The firm was called "Kapstroy 2000".

Regarding the FSB's claim that I am the organizer of the Moscow bombings, that I am connected with Basaev and Khattab, and that they paid me $500,000 for these bombings, and that I underwent training in a camp in Urus-Martan—all these claims are an absolute lie.

I have never had anything to do with the FSB or other similar structures.

Business Ventures in Moscow

As I wrote earlier, I lived and worked in Moscow. In June 1999, a person came to my firm whom I knew very well, since our school days. He suggested we engage in a business venture together; he said he had good opportunities for the sale of food products.

• First, he ordered mineral water from me; I delivered it to him, he sold it and settled the account with me on time.
• Then he told me that he needed premises in the southeast of Moscow where he supposedly had sales points.

I helped him secure these premises on Guryanova, on Kashirka, Borisovskie Prudy, and Kapotnya.

The Events of September 1999

On September 9, I was visiting friends, and at about 5 AM this person called my mobile and said that there was a small fire at the warehouse on Guryanova and I needed to go there. I said I would come and started getting ready, turned on the television, and saw what had actually happened, and I decided not to go anywhere and to wait it out.

On September 13, when the explosion of the house on Kashirskoye Highway occurred, I finally realized that I had been framed. I immediately called the police, the ambulance, even the 911 rescue service, and reported the warehouses at Borisovskie Prudy and Kapotnya, where after this, explosions were successfully prevented. I was declared a suspect, then the organizer, and since then I have had to hide.

Conclusion

Analyzing all these events, I come to the conclusion that this entire monstrous plan was developed and implemented by those people for whom it was beneficial at the time. But there was one misfire in their plan: the fact that I managed to get away from them. I think the fact that on September 9 I was not at home but visiting friends played its part. Now I am almost certain that this person with whom I worked (all data [illegible] ... [?] ... agent of the FSB)