Vladimir Putin said in a televised address on Saturday that all the terrorists had been arrested.
On Sunday evening, the first two of them – under heavy security – will be brought into the Basmannoye court in Moscow, where the prosecutors are asking for remand
The two are named Dalerzhon Mirzoyev and Muradali Saidakrami Rachabalizod according to Russian news media. Eventually, a third accused, 25-year-old Sjamsidina Faridulin, is also brought into the courtroom, according to the independent Russian Mediazona.
Then the fourth, Muhammad Sobir Fajzov (19), is rolled into a stretcher. He is in hospital after being injured during the arrest.
The four are charged with terrorism and being part of a terrorist group.
– They risk life imprisonment, writes the state-controlled news agency RIA.
Earlier on Sunday, the so-called investigative committee, which corresponds to the Norwegian police, published pictures of the suspects being transported to the investigative committee’s headquarters in Moscow.
Both in court and in the investigative committee, the accused are led by masked men – apparently from the FSB.
The suspects are tied behind and blindfolded. Inside the court, the white blindfold is removed. They are placed in a glass cage.
The men have an interpreter who translates between Tajik and Russian, according to the independent media Mediazona. Mirzoyev has bruises on his face. Rachabalizod has a bandage over his head after he had parts of his ear cut off.
According to the press service of the court, two of the accused admit guilt. All are currently in custody until 22 May.
Judges Jelena Lenskaja and Timur Vakhramejev have decided that the proceedings in court will be closed to the media.
Earlier on Sunday, several military bloggers connected to the security services published videos in which suspects were tortured, reports Mediazona.
In recent days, several Russian politicians have advocated that Russia must resume the practice of the death penalty after the terrorist attack on Friday. Former President Dmitry Medvedev has long believed that Russia should reintroduce the death penalty. On Sunday, Konstantin Zatulin from Putin’s United Russia party issued the same call in Komsomolskaya Pravda.
In order for Russia to become a member of the Council of Europe, they had to stop using the death penalty. This emerged in a so-called moratorium that Russia introduced in 1996. But after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine, the country is now banned from the Council of Europe.
The latest figures from the investigative committee are that 137 people have lost their lives in the terrorist attack, reports RBK. 62 have been identified.
Many Russians honored the dead on Sunday. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov tells state media that President Vladimir Putin has lit a candle in memory of those who died in the terror attack at his Novo-Ogaryovo residence outside Moscow.
IS has claimed responsibility for the atrocity. Vladimir Putin and the Russian authorities claim that the four suspected terrorists were arrested on their way to Ukraine after fleeing the scene. Ukraine has denied having anything to do with the attack.
