According to the Russian President’s Spokesman Dmitry Peskov, it was a mere coincidence that Head of the Chechen Republic Ramzan Kadyrov was awarded an order at one and the same time with the arrest of five suspected killers of Boris Nemtsov, one of whom serves in the Chechen internal troops.
On Mar 8, President Vladimir Putin awarded Kadyrov an order of honor for his professional achievements, high public activity and many-year services. “It takes months to draft papers for such an award,” Peskov said.
On Mar 8, Moscow’s Basmanny District Court arrested Zaur Dadayev, Anzor Gubashev, Shagid Gubashev, Tamerlan Eskerkhanov and Khamzat Bakhayev on suspicion of being involved in the murder of oppositionist Boris Nemtsov. One more suspect, former fighter of the Sever battalion Beslan Shavanov blew himself up on mar 8 night.
After the court’s verdict to arrest the suspects, Kadyrov called Dadayev and Shavanov “brave warriors” and expressed hope that the investigation will show if Dadayev - whom he considers to be a true patriot of Russia - is guilty or not.