Magomed Yevloyev

Magomed Yevloyev was born in the town of Malgobek, Chechen-Ingush Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic (now in the Republic of Ingushetia, Russia) in 1971.[http://www.lenta.ru/lib/14176029/ Евлоев, Магомед] collection of materials on Lenta.ru library {{in lang|ru}} In 1992, Yevloyev graduated from Saratov Law Institute (Саратовский Юридический Институт).

After graduation, Yevloyev began to work as a public procurator in Ingushetia. He soon became the Deputy Chief Procurator of Malgobek. In 1999, he was accused of complicity in the murder of Suleyman Tsechoyev, who was at that time imprisoned as a kidnapper. Allegedly Yevloyev had signed the permit allowing the murderers to take Tsechoyev from his cell. The accusations were not proven but Yevloyev resigned from his post as a prosecutor.

In 2001, Yevloyev founded the Moscow legal firm Infra-Yur. In 2008, the firm became Infra Holding, a company which oversaw construction, fishing, legal firms, and security bureaus. It also controlled Infra North America, a daughter firm operating in the United States. Yevloyev was the president of this holding.

Also in 2001, Yevloyev created the website "Ingushetia.ru". Originally there was no intention to make an opposition website; Yevloyev planned to host a neutral collection of materials on the history and culture of the Ingush people, without favoring any particular point of view. But he soon found that historical and cultural materials often included explosive political content as well, and the site became a source of political materials, such as information on the Second Chechen War, counter-terrorist operations, the Ossetian–Ingush conflict, and kidnappings and murders in Ingushetia. Many of these materials were highly critical of Ingushetia President Murat Zyazikov and his government.

In July 2007, the public procurator of Moscow's Kuntsevo municipality initiated a criminal case accusing Yevloyev of "inciting inter-ethnic hatred", though in the end Yevloyev was never indicted for any criminal activities. In October 2007, the Tsechoyev murder case was reopened and Yevloyev's family house in Malgobek was searched. After the search, Yevloyev's father, Yakhyu Yevloyev, convinced his son to publicly sever all ties with the Ingushetia.ru site, as it appeared to be too dangerous. Since then, the site has been controlled by an editorial committee chaired by Ibragim Kostoyev.

Yevloyev did not, however, completely withdraw from the politics of Ingushetia. He was one of the organizers of the I did not vote campaign, intended to expose mass voter fraud in Ingushetia during the 2008 Russian presidential election. According to official data, 98% of eligible Ingushetia voters took part in the elections, almost all voting for Dmitry Medvedev. But Yevloyev alleged that less than half of registered voters had actually participated in the elections, and therefore sought to compile a list of people who could personally guarantee that they did not vote in the election. If the list proved to include more than 2% of Ingushetia's voting registry, it might constitute proof of massive election fraud.

Yevloyev also organized and financed a campaign collecting signatures calling for the removal of Ingushetia President Zyazikov, and the restoration of the previous Ingushetia president Ruslan Aushev.

In the beginning of 2008, the office of the Ingushetia public procurator initiated hearings in Kuntsevo Court, demanding that access to the site Ingushetia.ru be restricted. According to the prosecutors, in an interview with Ingushetia businessman Musa Keligov hosted on the site, Keligov directly accused Zyazikov of connections with guerillas. The prosecutors argued that this material constituted libel as well as "public advocacy of extremist activity". In May 2008, the court issued an injunction demanding that Russian providers "limit access to the site by filtering its IP addresses". In June 2008, the court characterized the site as "extremist" and demanded its closure. The site was not closed. According to Ingushetia.ru's lawyer Kaloy Akhilgov, since the site is registered in the United States, it is therefore outside the jurisdiction of Russian courts. Akhilgov also stated that the decision is technically incorrect because it classifies the site under the heading "mass media" despite the fact that the site is not officially registered as such. Akhilgov added that they intended to appeal the court decision.

On 31 August 2008, Magomed Yevloyev was shot in the temple and killed while in police custody.[http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/7590719.stm Ingushetia website owner killed], BBC News, 31 August 2008[http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24272873-12377,00.html Kremlin critic found dead] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080916144238/http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/story/0,25197,24272873-12377,00.html |date=16 September 2008 }}, The Australian, 31 August 2008[http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/08/31/international/i072332D67.DTL&tsp=1 Deputy says Russian police kill Web site owner], Associated Press, 31 August 2008 Weeks before his killing, it was rumoured that Magomed knew his life was in danger and he had planned on seeking political asylum in a European Union country.[http://www.themoscowtimes.com/article/1010/42/369633.htm Editor of News Portal Flees Country], The Moscow Times, 7 August. Retrieved 31 August 2008 Local police claimed that Yevloyev was shot after he had attempted to grab an assault rifle from one of the police officers in the car.[https://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/01/world/europe/01ingushetia.html The New York Times] Human rights groups have rejected this account of Yevloyev's death, and the United States State Department has called for an investigation of the killing and for those responsible to be "held to account for what happened".[https://www.reuters.com/article/newsOne/idUSN0244665820080902 Reuters, "U.S. urges probe of journalist's death in Ingushetia", 2 Sep 2008] A spokesman for Vladimir Putin has said that an investigation will take place, but that Yevloyev had resisted arrest.[http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/e4693d2c-791d-11dd-9d0c-000077b07658.html Financial Times, "Tension in Ingushetia after journalist’s death", 3 September 2008]

In July 2008, Human Rights Watch documented dozens of arbitrary detentions, disappearances, acts of torture, and extrajudicial executions in Ingushetia.[https://www.hrw.org/english/docs/2008/06/24/russia19194.htm Killings, Torture, Disappearances in Chechnya-Style Counterinsurgency], Human Rights Watch, 31 August 2008

The Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe denounced Yevloyev's killing as an "assassination" aimed at cracking down on dissent in Ingushetia. The killing also triggered calls for Ingushetia's independence from Russia. The organizer of the protest rally, Magomed Khazibiyev, declared that the Ingush opposition would demand independence, appealing to Russia's recognition of Georgia's breakaway Abkhazia and South Ossetia as precedent.Belton, Catherine (3 September 2008). [http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/e4693d2c-791d-11dd-9d0c-000077b07658.html Tension in Ingushetia after journalist’s death]. Financial Times.

The funeral of Yevloyev developed into an anti-government protest, in which, according to organizers, several thousands participated. Early on 2 September, police dispersed a sleeping crowd of around 50 men who remained in the main square in Nazran, Ingushetia's capital city.[https://web.archive.org/web/20080908024127/http://www.reuters.com/article/homepageCrisis/idUSL224586._CH_.2400 Police break up protest in Russia's Ingushetia]. Reuters. 2 September 2008.

His death investigation case is classified as "Murder by negligence" according to the Criminal Code of Russia. Another criminal case for his illegal detention (according to the investigators, police did not have the right to arrest him when they did) was opened in February 2009,{{cite news|first=Musa|last=Muradov|title=Убийство Магомеда Евлоева вышло на должностной уровень |url=http://www.kommersant.ru/doc.aspx?docsid=1139375|publisher=Kommersant|date=17 March 2009|accessdate=18 March 2009}} but withdrawn in March 2009.[http://www.rferl.org/content/Ingushetia_Prosecutor_Reverses_Decision_To_Investigate_Journalists_Death/1513766.html Ingushetia Prosecutor Reverses Decision To Investigate Journalist's Death]. Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty. 20 March 2009

On 11 December 2009, a court in Ingushetia found Ibragim Yevloyev guilty of unintentionally murdering Magomed Yevloyev. Ibragim Yevloyev was sentenced to two years of a "colony-settlement". In February 2010 his sentence was mitigated to two years of freedom restriction.[http://lenta.ru/news/2010/03/02/change1/ Sentence of Murderer of Ingush Oppositioner Mitigated], Lenta.Ru, February 2010 (in Russian)

Relatives of Magomed Yevloyev do not trust the official version. In their view, the owner of Ingushetiya.Ru was murdered intentionally. The family addressed the European Court on Human Rights with a complaint.

{{reflist|33em}}

• {{in lang|ru}} [http://www.kavkaz-uzel.ru/persontext/person/id/1228243.html Magomed Yevloyev's biography]. Kavkaz-Uzel.
• [http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7591509.stm BBC News: Anger at death of Kremlin critic ]
• [http://ingushetiya.wordpress.com English language blog of Ingushetiya.ru]

{{Assassinated Russian journalists}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Yevloyev, Magomed}}

Category:1971 births

Category:2008 deaths

Category:People from Malgobek

Category:Ingush people

Category:Assassinated Russian journalists

Category:Extrajudicial killings

Category:Journalists killed in Russia

Category:People murdered in Russia

Category:Russian murder victims

Category:Deaths in police custody in Russia

Category:Deaths by firearm in Russia

Category:20th-century Russian journalists