VLADIKAVKAZ. April 9 (Interfax) - The North Caucasus District Military Court will have the first hearing in the Aslan Gagiyev trial on Thursday. The gang is charged with over 40 murders and attempts on the life of law enforcement officers in the Moscow region and North Ossetia.
"The hearings will be held on camera in Vladikavkaz but all members of the court come from the North Caucasus District Military Court based in Rostov-on-Don," a court representative told Interfax.
Over 46 members of the gang led by Gagiyev aka Jako are suspected of committing more than 40 murders since 2004, including the murder of Vladikavkaz Mayor Vitaly Karayev, North Ossetia - Alania Deputy Prime Minister Kazbek Pagiyev and his driver Vladimir Gasiyev in 2008 and the murder of Vladikavkaz Promyshlenny district deputy prosecutor Oleg Oziyev in 2013. They attempted to murder other police officers and officials as well.
Some gang members are already serving long prison terms, and one of their leaders, Oleg Gagiyev, has been given a life sentence.
Fifteen gang members are standing trial, another two are on the international and federal most wanted lists, and three, among them Aslan Gagiyev, have been detained abroad and are being prepared for extradition.
Aslan Gagiyev will face Russian investigators as soon as formalities of his extradition from Austria are cleared.