The organizer of journalist Anna Politkovskaya’s murder, former operative Sergei Khadjikurbanov, has appeared in a video from the special operation zone for the first time since his pardon. The footage featuring him was released by the Telegram channel Baza.
In the video, Khadjikurbanov, dressed in military uniform and holding a cup, delivers a toast.
“To achieve purity, one must get a little dirty,” he declares.
According to Baza’s speculation, the footage was captured in the spring of 2023. In one of the photos, Khadjikurbanov is seen holding the Russian flag with his call sign, “Voron.”
On November 14, it was announced that Khadjikurbanov, who was sentenced to 20 years in prison, had been released early from the colony and had gone to the military operation zone in Ukraine. According to Baza’s information, the convict in Politkovskaya’s murder case was supposed to remain in the colony until 2034, but at the end of 2022, he ended up in the combat zone. It was reported that Khadjikurbanov started his service as a reconnaissance unit commander and rose to the rank of battalion commander. After six months of service, he extended his contract with the Ministry of Defense, leading to his release from imprisonment.
Previously, retired major of the airborne troops (VDV) special forces, Batyr Bekmuradov, had also headed from a maximum-security prison to the special operation zone.
