Warlord Maskhadov's crony detained

During a special operation on Thursday the officers of the Federal Security Service in Chechnya apprehended Abubakar Visimbayev, a crony of the leader of Chechen separatists Aslan Maskhadov. This was disclosed to RIA Novosti on Friday by Colonel Ilya Shabalkin, official spokesman for the regional operative headquarters of anti-terrorist operation control in the North Caucasus.

He specified that when the operation to detain the militant was carried out his brother Anzor, with a small girl as a cover, ran out of the house and escaped.

According to Mr. Shabalkin, to avoid victims on the part of peaceful citizens from among Vasimbayev's relatives, the security officers did not open fire from the small arms. "Abubakar Vasimbayev's parents who were in the house during the operation did not suffer," Mr. Shabalkin said.

As it was established by the investigation, Vasimbayev together with Rustan Ganiyev and Datsilkhan Yelikhadzhiyev (both of them were apprehended in 2003) took part in abducting girls many of which were not Chechens. The abducted girls were then subjected to psychological brainwashing and insults. "Zulikhan Elikhadzhiyeva was one of such zombie bombers, who on July 5, 2003, blasted a self-made explosive device in Moscow during a rock-concert in Tushino," the headquarters spokesman said.

Abubakar Visimbayev was personally engaged in preparing the Ganiyev sisters, who together with other members of Movsar Barayev's gang staged a terrorist act in the Moscow theatre centre in Dubrovka street, as well terrorist suicide-bomber Zarema Muzhakhoyeva (sentenced to 20 years of imprisonment on April 8), who tried to bring a bag with the self-made explosive device to a Moscow restaurant," Mr. Shabalkin said.(More than 100 people died as a result of these terrorist acts.) The headquarters spokesman explained that the Spetsnaz units managed to track down Visimbayev with the investigation under way into the attempt on the life of Murad Zyazikov, President of Ingushetia (a North Caucasian republic inside Russia, which borders on Chechnya), which was committed by the terrorists on April 6.

"Two local residents from the Shelkovskaya village were of great help in apprehending Visimbayev. They pointed to the house where the terrorist was hiding," Mr. Shabalkin said.

According to him, in line with the legislation and in the established order the citizen, who reported on the whereabouts of the terrorist will be paid a reward of 600,000 roubles ($1 is about 28.5 roubles).

Apart from that, in the house where Visimbayev was hiding, law enforcers discovered a hiding place, which contained video-cassettes, a photographic porno film, as well as over $72,000 and more than 230,000 roubles," the headquarters spokesman said.