Blame it on Ramzan Kadyrov’s well-known Instagram addiction; the strongman leader of Russia’s Chechen Republic was apparently so worried when he lost his mobile phone at a wedding that police questioned more than 1,000 people into the early morning in an attempt to find it.
The human rights organisation Memorial, which has documented numerous abuses in the mountainous region of Chechnya, including the murder of its own activist there in 2009, said in a statement that the loss of Kadyrov’s phone occurred on Saturday at the opening ceremony for the Shira-Yurt museum constructed in the form of a medieval Chechen village.
According to his hugely popular Instagram account, the “grandiose holiday” attended by “thousands of residents of the republic” saw Kadyrov dance with elders, size up a shotgun and a cannon and preside over a lavish feast. The event was capped off with a traditional Chechen wedding at which Memorial said Kadyrov gave the young couple 1 million roubles (about €20,750).
However guests could not park within 1km of the village and Kadyrov’s guards – members of whom have previously been accused of kidnapping, extortion, assault, rape and attempted murder – searched attendees and their cars.
As the event came to a close at about 9pm, guests were informed via loudspeaker that Kadyrov had lost his phone and officials began questioning them, said Memorial, one of the oldest and most respected Russian rights groups.
Members of the presidential administration called organisers to find out the names of those who had attended, and later that night police and regional administration employees summoned more than 1,000 adults and children for questioning about the phone or any other lost item.
Most returned home in the early morning, Memorial said.
Kadyrov’s press secretary, Alvi Karimov, denied that he had lost his phone. “This is all a lie. It’s not true. Ramzan Akhmadovich [Kadyrov] has two phones, and they are both on his desk,” Karimov said.
Kadyrov was appointed head of Chechnya by Vladimir Putin in 2007, three years after Kadyrov's father was assassinated in that position. – (Guardian service)