Crimean Tatar Rustem Virati dies in Russian penal colony
Rustem Virati, a 60-year-old Crimean Tatar who was imprisoned by the Russians for eight years, has died in a penal colony in the city of Dmitrovgrad, Russia's Ulyanovsk Oblast.
Source: Refat Chubarov, Chairman of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people, on Telegram; Crimean Tatar Resource Centre
Details: The report says that Rustem Virati is a resident of the Henichesk district of Kherson Oblast, which is currently occupied by Russia, who was detained by the Russians in the spring of 2023 after numerous searches in his house.
"He was accused of assisting the economic blockade of Crimea, which began in 2015, and of participating in the Crimean Tatar battalion named after Noman Chelebidzhikhan," Chubarov wrote.
Chubarov said that after his arrest, Rustem Virati was subjected to numerous tortures and severely beaten. All court hearings were held in closed session. After the sentence of eight years of strict regime, Virati was first taken to Ufa and then to the penal colony in the city of Dmitrovgrad, Ulyanovsk Oblast, from where the news of his death came.
The family members learned of Rustem Virati's death on 10 February 2025, but the exact date and cause of death have not yet been established. Rustem Virati is survived by his wife and three adult children.
The Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people expressed their sincere condolences to the family and relatives of the deceased.
Background: Earlier, the Crimean Solidarity NGO reported that Crimean Tatar human rights activist Riza Izetov, sentenced to 19 years, complained about the harsh conditions of detention in the Yakutsk colony, where he was repeatedly punished with disciplinary punishments.
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