JUNE 2011

Monday, June 13, 2011

DANIEL McLAUGHLIN

THE AUTHORITIES in Russia are on alert for a violent far-right reaction to the murder of Yuri Budanov, a notorious former colonel who became an icon for extreme nationalists.

Mr Budanov was shot four times in the head in central Moscow on Friday, in an attack that far-right groups immediately blamed on Chechens.

The police claimed the killing could be a "provocation” intended to ignite smouldering ethnic tension in Russia.

Mr Budanov was convicted in 2003 of having brutally murdered teenager Elza Kungayeva during a tour of duty in war-torn Chechnya, after being cleared of the killing in a previous trial.

He was granted early release from jail in 2009 due to good behaviour, to the fury of Ms Kungayeva’s family and many others, who saw him as the embodiment of the brutal methods used by the Kremlin to crush Chechnya’s rebels.

He was hailed ...

Published: 10 June, 2011, 13:35

Yury Budanov, a disgraced Russian colonel sentenced for kidnapping and killing a Chechen teenager, has been killed in central Moscow. Some Russian nationalists believe him to be a hero unjustly jailed to pacify Chechens.

Budanov was shot on Friday in one of Moscow’s biggest streets in front of a notary’s office. Police believe he was killed by a trained assassin in a well-planned operation.

Preliminary reports say a hitman and an accomplice committed the crime. One person armed with a silenced pistol is believed to have shot Budanov four times at point-blank range. The shooter aimed for his target’s head, investigators say.

The accomplice was waiting in a car parked nearby. After the kill the duo sped away. The car was later found not far from the crime scene. Inside the vehicle, police discovered the pistol which apparently was used to kill Budanov.

Police are checking ...