Another resident of Dagestan has been accused of involvement in a banned organization

A resident of Dagestan faces up to six years in prison, as investigators consider him a participant in an extremist public association. This is at least the second criminal case against an alleged participant of the USSR* in Dagestan initiated since the beginning of the week.

The criminal case against the man was initiated under the article on participation in the activities of an extremist organization (part 2 of article 283 of the Criminal Code of Russia), which provides for a prison term of two to six years.

According to the investigation, the resident of Dagestan joined an interregional public association between 2017 and 2019, whose activities were later recognized as extremist and banned in Russia. This happened in July 2019, and the man became aware of it.

Despite the ban on the association, the subject of the case "continued to participate in its activities, performing the functions previously assigned to him," the message from the republican Investigative Committee states.

According to security officials, the resident of Dagestan issued and distributed documents on behalf of the organization, "including leaflets and affidavits ", as well as participated in meetings of its supporters. "In addition, the subject, together with another member of the association, posted video materials containing the ideological positions of the banned organization on a video hosting site," the official Telegram channel of the agency reported.

The message from the Investigative Committee notes that investigative actions are underway in the case, but it does not specify whether the man has been detained and whether a preventive measure has been chosen for him. The age, occupation, and place of residence of the suspect are also not indicated.

The second case of the USSR* since the beginning of the week

Although the release does not mention the name of the banned organization, there is only one organization in the list of extremist associations on the Ministry of Justice's website that was banned by a primary court decision in July 2019: the interregional public association "Union of Slavic Forces of Rus"* (alternative names – "Union of Soviet Socialist Republics", "USSR").

Three days earlier, on October 12, the Investigative Committee of Dagestan reported about another resident of the republic who was caught in connection with an extremist organization. The source then clarified that it was about the "USSR"*.

Supporters of this association in Dagestan have repeatedly become subjects of criminal cases and received real prison sentences. For example, in July 2026, a resident of Makhachkala, Larisa Bochieva (also mentioned in the media as Larisa Bachieva), was sentenced to six years in a colony for creating a cell of the extremist organization "USSR"*.

The woman was accused under part 1 of article 282.2 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (organization of an extremist association), as, according to the investigation, she led the "Makhachkala Executive Committee of People's Deputies of the USSR", which law enforcement agencies linked to the banned extremist movement "Union of Slavic Forces of Rus". The Dagestani association of citizens "USSR" was "artificially and illegally tied" to the banned organization, said Bochieva's lawyer, Patimat Abdulaeva, to the "Caucasian Knot". "Moreover, it is absurd to call Dagestanis 'Slavic forces'," she added.

People who consider themselves citizens of the "USSR" are an informal community; they unite in various organizations, human rights activist Alexander Verkhovsky told the "Caucasian Knot" in March 2023. "These are different people who believe that the USSR continues to legally exist, while the Russian Federation does not. They unite in different organizations. From time to time, these organizations also split into parts," he explained. According to the human rights activist, several organizations of those who consider themselves citizens of the "USSR" have already been banned in Russia, but this abbreviation is not always present in their names.

* The Supreme Court of Komi recognized the organization as extremist in July 2019 and banned its activities on the territory of the Russian Federation. Several other organizations with the abbreviation "USSR" have also been included in the list of extremists.

** The activities of the Meta company (which owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp) are banned in Russia.