Russia Detains Another Suspect Over Concert Hall Attack That Killed 144

A Russian court on Friday ordered another suspect charged with “terrorism” over the deadly attack on a Moscow concert hall to be held in pre-trial detention.

Russia has detained 12 people in connection with the massacre.

They include the four men accused of having shot dozens of concert-goers and then set the Crocus City Hall venue on fire last week in the deadliest attack in Russia for two decades.

The Basmanny district court in Moscow said Friday it had ordered Nazrimad Lutfulloi, a Tajik citizen, to be held in pre-trial detention until 22 May.

Nine of the 12 people arrested by the Russian authorities have been sent to pre-trial detention. There has been no update on the other three.

The suspects face life in prison.

The Islamic State (IS) group has repeatedly claimed responsibility for the attack, its deadliest on European soil.

But Russian President Vladimir Putin has alleged a Ukrainian and Western connection.

Russia’s Investigative Committee has said it has evidence that “Ukrainian nationalists” were behind the attack and had funded the gunmen with crypto currency payments from Ukraine. 

It did not provide details of the allegations.

On Friday, it claimed the attackers had received orders from an unidentified coordinator via the Telegram messaging app, and that the gunmen had planned to flee to Ukraine to collect a reward.

Ukraine and the West have repeatedly dismissed the claims, accusing Moscow of seeking to exploit the tragedy for their own ends.

Russia’s health minister said Friday that another victim had died in hospital, taking the death count from the attack to 144.

IS on Friday issued its latest claim of responsibility when it said four of its members had been arrested after the attack.

In the latest issue of its weekly Al-Nabaa magazine published Friday on Telegram channels, the group said its fighters had been hunted down by ground and air forces and captured.