Sergei Khadzhikurbanov arrives before the trial at the City Court in Moscow on 15 January 2014. Journalist Anna Politkovskaya was gunned down in a contract-style killing in her Moscow apartment block on 07 October 2006. (Photo: EPA / Maxim Shipenkov) 
Sergei Khadzhikurbanov, who was given a 20-year sentence, received a pardon for participating in the Special Military Operation (SVO) in Ukraine.
Khadzhikurbanov’s lawyer, Alexey Mikhalchik, told RBC:
“Under the first contract Khadzhikurbanov participated in the SVO as a prisoner, was pardoned, and now participates in the SVO as a freelance military man, having concluded a contract with the Defense Ministry. He worked in special forces in the 90s, he has experience, which is probably why he was immediately offered a command position. I believe that in a sense justice has been served, as I believe that he was not involved in the murder of Anna Politkovskaya.”
/file/dailymaverick/wp-content/uploads/2023/11/Anna-Politkovskaya-Inset.jpg "People attend a commemoration rally in honour of slain Russian journalist Anna Politkovskaya in Moscow on 7 October 2012. Politkovskaya was killed 7 October 2006 in her building. (Photo: EPA / Maxim Shipenkov)")
Politkovskaya’s daughter and son told the newspaper Novaya Gazeta that Khadzhikurbanov’s pardon is a “desecration” of their mother’s memory. In a joint statement, Vera and Ilya said they were never told that one of the men responsible for their mother’s murder has received a presidential pardon. “Seeking justice is pointless. They’ve thrown justice in solitary confinement for discrediting the authorities,” said Politkovskaya’s children.
Read more in Daily Maverick: War in Ukraine
Anna Politkovskaya was killed in the entrance of her Moscow apartment building on 7 October 2006. Six people were given lengthy prison sentences for their involvement in her murder, ranging from 11 years to life.
Life sentences were handed to Chechen gangster Lom-Ali Gaitukaev, who was convicted of organising the killing, and his nephew Rustam Makhmudov. Gaitukaev died in prison in June 2017. Three other people, including Khadzhikurbanov, who acted as middlemen in organising the crime, received between 14 and 20 years in prison. DM
First published by Meduza