The 20-year-old Russian man, who was beaten by the son of Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov as he was accused of burning a copy of the Koran, was sentenced today to three and a half years in prison in Chechnya.

Nikita Zhuravel had been charged with ‘hooliganism’ and ‘violation of the right to freedom of conscience’, as well as ‘insulting religious feelings’.

His trial took place in this Russian republic in the Caucasus, which is a predominantly Muslim republic.

The young man was found “guilty of the crimes for which he was charged (…) and will serve a sentence of three and a half years in a prison colony”, the court in the Chechen capital Grozny, where the trial took place, said in a statement.

The court noted in its statement the great social impact of the case in Russia.

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The young man was arrested in March and accused of burning a copy of the Koran in Volgograd, in south-western Russia.

He was subsequently transferred to Chechnya at the request of the local authorities.

His case took on political dimensions when footage was shown of Kadyrov’s son Adam, then 15 years old, beating Nikita Zuravel, who was then in prison.

Kadyrov said he was proud of his son.

He was subsequently honoured with a number of official awards from various Russian regions.

Video of Kadyrov’s son beating the Russian prisoner:

Ramzan Kadyrov published a video of his son Adam beating Nikita Zhuravel, who was accused of burning the Koran, in a pre-trial detention center.

“There are still disputes online about the fact of Adam Kadyrov’s beating of Holy Quran burner Nikita Zhuravel, an accomplice of the… pic.twitter.com/MfAEn84OHd

— NEXTA (@nexta_tv) September 25, 2023