Russia

Ex-Russian Lawmaker Accused of Paying for Rumors About Kadyrov Assassination Attempt

Magomed Gadzhiev, a former State Duma deputy from Dagestan and designated foreign agent in Russia, was accused by compatriots Abdula Mamadibirov and Murad Goshdadov in a video shared with Sputnik of orchestrating rumors about an assassination attempt on Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov, promising them $2.5 million each for spreading the claims.
Sputnik
In the video, Mamadibirov and Goshdadov accuse Gadzhiev of tricking them into spreading false information about an attempt on Kadyrov's life.
They claim that Gadzhiev promised them $2.5 million each to spread rumors and defame the businessman and Senator Suleiman Kerimov. Mamadibirov and Goshdadov claim to have fulfilled their part of the agreement, but never received the money. They demanded that the ex-deputy confess to Kadyrov that no assassination attempt was actually being prepared by Kerimov.
"You promised us $2.5 million each to tell the story you made up about an assassination attempt on Ramzan [Kadyrov] in order to stigmatize Suleiman [Kerimov]. We risked our lives for you," Mamadibirov and Goshdadov said.
Gadzhiev may be seeking to leave the country following the scandal. "At the moment, Gadzhiev holds a passport of the Republic of Turkiye, but he has not given up his attempts to obtain American citizenship," one source told Sputnik.
He wanted to create an interethnic conflict between Russia's neighboring republics, the source added.
"According to the plan of Gadzhiyev and his handlers from foreign intelligence services, the statement about the impending assassination attempt was meant to ignite an ethnic conflict between [Russia's regions of] Chechnya, Dagestan and Ingushetia," the source said.
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