Nikita Zhuravel, accused of burning the Koran, had his arrest term extended

The Grozny Vysait district court extended the arrest of Nikita Zhuravel, accused of burning the Koran, for six months. He will remain in custody until April 20, 2024.

Fresh photos from the courtroom show a dark mark under the arrestee’s eye, presumably a bruise, Kavkaz.Realii writes.

At the meeting, the defense also submitted a motion to remove judge Ruslan Dandaev, referring to his probable bias. According to Yulia Antonova’s lawyer, Dandaev is an interested person, as he is a Chechen and a Muslim, and therefore cannot be objective in considering this case. The court refused to grant the petition.

At the trial, Nikita Zhuravel asked for forgiveness from the Muslims and declared that he found himself guilty of burning the Koran, but he had no motive for a gross violation of order.

Zhuravel was charged with two articles: insulting the feelings of believers, committed in places intended for religious services and religious ceremonies; as well as about hooliganism motivated by religious hatred, committed by a group of persons by prior agreement.

The next meeting is scheduled for October 24.

• Nikita Zhuravel, a 19-year-old resident of Volgograd, accused of burning the Koran, was detained on May 21. On the instructions of the head of the Investigative Committee of Russia Alexander Bastrykin, Zhuravel’s case was transferred to Chechnya, he explained this step by “numerous appeals from residents of the Chechen Republic with a request to recognize them as victims.”
• In August, the 15-year-old son of the head of Chechnya, Adam Kadyrov, beat Zhuravel in the Grozny pre-trial detention center. The police of the republic refused to initiate a criminal case for the beating of Zhuravel, since 15-year-old Adam Kadyrov was not of the age of criminal responsibility. Two days later, Adam Kadyrov received the title of Hero of Chechnya.
• On the eve of the first court session, the head of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, insulted Zhuravel. He published a video in which he accuses Zhuravel of the fact that he “burned the Koran not because of ignorance or ignorance, but knowingly, wanting to offend Muslims, to spread confessions in Russia.”