Detained militant tells law enforcers how Umarov betrayed Gelayev

A militant from a bandit group led by so-called field commander Doku Umarov was detained in Chechnya, RIA Novosti was told in the regional operational headquarters for controlling the antiterrorist operation in the North Caucasus.

"On April 20, while conducting reconnaissance and search operations in the Vedeno district near the Tezen-Kala settlement, law enforcement bodies detained a wounded member of illegal armed formation, Baudi Khadzhiyev, who was born in 1979," a spokesman for the headquarters said.

According to the spokesman, during his interrogation, the detained man said that since 1998 he was in a bandit group included in Ruslan Gelayev's illegal armed unit, which after Mr. Gelayev's death was led by Mr. Umarov.

"It also follows from Khadzhiyev's statement that disagreements between the leaders of the bandit groups over the distribution of money from foreign extremist organizations," have become deeper, the spokesman for the headquarters said.

The detained man said that to establish control over financial flows, the leaders of bandit groups will even betray their so-called associates.

"In particular, Khadzhiyev said that the militants believe that Umarov personally convinced Gelayev to leave Chechnya because the federal forces were searching for him. He also convinced Gelayev that the safest way was to go to Georgia was through Daghestan along a reliable route not controlled by the federal forces," the source said.

However, when the federal forces blocked Gelayev and the militants who accompanied him in the mountains of Daghestan, Umarov did not help him, as he allegedly promised to do, Mr. Khadzhiyev said.

In connection with this, the members of the illegal armed units are inclined to regard Umarov as a traitor who has actually removed Gelayev with the help of the federal forces, the spokesman for the headquarters said.

In his opinion about Mr. Umarov's actions, the militant said that by taking Mr. Gelayev's place, Mr. Umarov became the head of several large groups and, consequently, can now independently control the distribution of money coming from abroad for maintaining bandit units, the spokesman for the headquarters said.