Asan Akhmetov
Detained Since: September 5, 2021.
Charges: Membership in a terrorist organization (Article 205.5).
Sentence: 15 years in prison and a fine of 500,000 Russian rubles.
Biography: Asan Akhtemov, a resident of Simferopol, was attending trials of Crimean Tatars and supporting families of the detained at the time of his abduction. He had organized a project about civil activists who had remained in Crimea after the annexation and was a journalist in the Nefes civil initiative. He was tortured in prison after his abduction; a lawyer could not reach Akhtemov until 10 days after his arrest. His sentence will likely be between 10 and 20 years of imprisonment, as that is what he will face when he goes to trial. The extent of the torture he experienced in prison is unknown. However, Akhtemov told his legal team that his wife was also threatened, and that he was forced to confess after undergoing torturous electric shocks.
Advocacy Partner: PEN America
Past Advocate: Sen. Bob Menendez (D-NJ, Ret.)
Updates:
- On September 21, 2022, a Russian court sentenced Asan Akhmetov to 15 years in prison and fined 500,000 Russian rubles. During the same trial his brother Aziz Akhmetov was sentenced to 13 years in prison and fined 500,000 Russian rubles and Nariman Celal was sentenced to 17 years in prison and fined 700,000 Russian rubles (September 21, 2022, Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine).
- Senator Bob Menendez (D-NJ) released a statement on March 18, 2023, calling for the release of all 14 Crimean Journalists in the Defending Freedoms Project, including Akhtemov (March 18, 2023, Senate Foreign Relations Committee).
- On July 28, 2023 the Third Court of Appeals of the Common Jurisdiction in Sochi rejected an appeal filed by Asan Akhmetov, his brother Aziz, and Nariman Celal. During this proceeding the court also ordered that the three spend the "first three years of their terms in cells and the rest of the time in penal colonies" (July 28, 2023, Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty).