Ilkin Melikov

On 19th of September 2019, Melikov was detained as a witness in a case involving his acquaintances from Nizhnevartovsk, who had been accused of participating in the activities of a terrorist organisation. According to Melikov, during interrogation he was beaten and threatened with the planting of drugs. Upon his arrest, he was punched in the eye, kicked in the back, and had his arms twisted before being handcuffed and placed in the trunk of a jeep for transportation to the interrogation site. After the interrogation, Melikov was released. A month later, he left Russia. On November 27th, a case was opened against him for participation in the activities of a terrorist organisation, and he was put on the wanted list. On 29th of April 2022, he was detained by the police in Tbilisi. Initially, they informed him that he matched the description of a suspect involved in the theft of technical equipment and requested to see his passport. He went home to retrieve his ID, and the police entered the apartment with him, insisting that he accompany them to the department for identification. When Melikov stated that he would call his lawyer, the officers began twisting his arms and demanded that he turn off his phone. He was then handcuffed and taken to the territory of the Russian Federation, specifically to North Ossetia, where he was placed in a pre-trial detention center. On June 6th 2025, the Central District Military Court sentenced him to 13 years' imprisonment, of which he is to spend the first seven years in prison and the remainder in a strict regime colony.