A Moscow court has detained another suspect as an accomplice in the attack by gunmen on a suburban Moscow concert hall that killed 144 people in March. Dzhumokhon Kurbonov, a citizen of Tajikistan, is accused of providing the attackers with means of communication and financing. The judge ruled Kurbonov would be kept in custody until 22 May pending investigation and trial.
Twelve defendants have been arrested in the case, including four who allegedly carried out the attack at the Crocus City Hall concert venue. The suspects appeared in the same Moscow court at the end of March on terrorism charges and showed signs of severe beatings. One of them appeared to be barely conscious during the hearing. The court ordered that all four men, identified as citizens of Tajikistan, also be held in custody until 22 May.
A faction of the Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for the massacre in which gunmen shot people waiting for a show by a popular rock band and then set the building on fire. However, Russian officials, including President Vladimir Putin, have persistently claimed, without presenting evidence, that Ukraine and the West had a role in the attack. Ukraine denies involvement and accuses Moscow of using the allegation as a pretext to intensify fighting in Ukraine.
In other news, US intelligence agencies have determined that Russian President Vladimir Putin most likely did not order the killing of opposition leader Alexei Navalny, who died while in custody at an Arctic prison camp in February. Navalny’s allies accused Putin of having him murdered, but the Kremlin has denied any involvement. The Kremlin also stated that Russia will look for ways to overcome any EU sanctions on its liquefied natural gas operations.