One of the suspects in the attack in Dagestan had previously been convicted on terrorism charges, according to media reports
Three people have been detained after attacking a police officer and firing eight bullets at him using his own gun in the city of Derbent in the Republic of Dagestan in Russia’s Caucasus, the Investigative Committee has said.
During the incident, which happened early on Sunday, the three suspects assaulted the policeman, brought him to the ground and started punching and kicking him, the agency said in a statement.
At some point, one of them “took possession of the officer’s service weapon and fired at least eight shots at him, delivering a gunshot wound,” the statement read.
The suspects, who were all local residents, fled the scene, but were detained hours later, the Investigative Committee said.
The agency did not disclose the reason for the altercation, only saying the suspects had been “disturbing public order” in one of the city’s restaurants.
According to Tass news agency, one of the bullets hit the 28-year-old patrol and inspection service officer in the thigh. He was hospitalized in moderate condition.
Criminal cases involving an attempt on the life of a law enforcement officer and theft of a firearm with the use of violence have been launched against the men, the Investigative Committee has said.
The suspects were under the influence of drugs during the attack, according to local Telegram channels.
Ria-Novosti and Tass reported, citing security sources, that one of the detained men had previously been sentenced on terrorism charges.
The sources said that Sandro Shikhmagomedov, who is the son of the former head of Dagestan’s Tabasaransky District, had previously been “sentenced to one-and-a-half years in prison for his involvement in an explosion at a police station.”
In September 2023, a suicide bomber detonated an explosive device planted in a car in the courtyard of a district police department in the village of Khuchni in Tabasaransky District. Two people were killed and 17 others hospitalized with injuries as a result of the attack.
