Chechen field commander Lecha Islamov, most commonly known among the separatists under the nickname Beard, has died in jail of illness, sources at the Russian Justice Ministryâs department for penitentiaries said Friday. Islamov, 43, served a term in a high security jail. March 23, he was moved to a penitentiary medical center in Russiaâs southern Volgograd region in the wake of health deterioration. âThe sick inmate was placed into the section for somatic diseases, where he was given a complex course of treatment,â the sources said, adding that his relatives and lawyer had been allowed to visit him there.
"Oleg! Give him the complex treatment!"
"Not... the complex treatment!" |
âDespite intensive therapy, he died April 21 of toxicodermia,â they said. The prosecutors launched examination of the causes of his death as stipulated by law.
"Oleg! How did that man come down with massive pustules all over his body?"
"It was... the complex treatment."
"Not... the complex treatment!" |
Operatives of the Russian Security Service (FSB) detained Islamov in Chechnya in July 2000, and the Krasnodar territory court sentenced him to nine years in jail May 31, 2002, for organizing paramilitary units and involvement in hostage taking. In November 2002, however, Russiaâs Supreme Court overruled the sentence and returned the case for reinvestigation to the Krasnodar territory court. |