Alina Djikaeva complained about pressure in the pre-trial detention center.
The journalist and editor-in-chief of the publication "Sapa", arrested in April for purchasing information from security forces, reported extortion and pressure from security forces.
As reported by "Caucasian Knot", on April 16, it became known that the Zamoskvoretsky Court of Moscow arrested the editor-in-chief of "Sapa Media", Alina Djikaeva, on charges of bribing a police officer from Makhachkala. The defense appealed Djikaeva's arrest. After her arrest, at least three editors-in-chief of regional publications and the head of the regional branch of the Union of Journalists of Russia pledged support for her, but the court refused to release the editor of "Sapa" from the pre-trial detention center. In mid-June, Djikaeva's arrest was extended for another month.
"Sapa" is a network of Telegram channels dedicated to news from North Ossetia, South Ossetia, and the entire North Caucasus. The project was positioned as "regional independent media", publishing exclusive news about incidents, criminal events, and stories about the lives of ordinary people, noted the channel "Govorит НеМосква" (included in the register of foreign agents).
Alina Djikaeva complained that operatives are forcing her to give false testimony against others, threatening to extend her arrest. Djikaeva's appeal appeared on her personal Telegram channel "Bouquet of Wild Garlic" on July 6, the day before the hearing on the extension of the preventive measure in the Zamoskvoretsky Court.
"Friends, I am Alina Djikaeva. You know me as a journalist and the head of the information resource "Sapa". But today I speak to you as a woman and a mother who has been deprived of the most precious thing for a dubious goal. I am writing this letter not to justify myself, but so that you can hear my voice through the deaf walls of the pre-trial detention center," Djikaeva writes.
According to her, on April 14, armed men broke into her home and took her to one of the police stations in Vladikavkaz. In the evening, she was charged with passing money to a police officer in Dagestan for information about incidents.
"They counted 285 thousand rubles over five years. That same night, I was taken to Moscow and the next day placed in the "Pechatniki" pre-trial detention center. Three months have passed since then. Every mother will understand: this is a severe trial! I have two sons - Leo and Alex. The elder is 8 years old, the younger is 5. And all this time I have been deprived of the opportunity to see them and communicate with them. And they are deprived of a mother's warmth and care," the journalist's message states.
According to Djikaeva, for three months now, employees have been regularly coming to her, repeatedly offering her to betray someone. "But I have no one to betray. And it seems that this is the problem: I do not give the testimony they expect from me. Therefore, I am kept in custody, being blackmailed with the most valuable thing - time," she complains in her letter.
The journalist emphasizes that her detention is formally explained by the claim that she may obstruct investigative actions and pressure witnesses. However, there is still not a single witness indicated in the case, and during her three months in the pre-trial detention center, not a single investigative action has been conducted.
"In a few days, the court will again decide whether to extend my separation from my children or listen to the voice of reason. Only publicity and your help will restore justice. And I will finally be able to hug my boys," Djikaeva concluded her appeal.