MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The men were caught in Turkey together with a dozen of Russian foreign fighters, Among them was Varvara Karaulova, a female student who later changed her name in preparation for another attempt at fleeing to Syria.
"Akhmayev and Gorsultayev, who tried with Karaulova to c
ross illegally from Syria to Turkey, have been given prison sentences of respectively 5 and 3 years," a judge of the Moscow District Military Court said.
The group of would-be jihadists were detained on the Turkish-Syrian border and deported to Moscow in June last year. Karaulova’s father said she had fallen in love with a Daesh recruiter.
She changed her name to Alexandra Ivanova months after returning home but was accused of preparing another trip to Syria. The student eventually pleaded guilty and is being held in custody. Her detention was reportedly extended until December 13.