Ninth Moscow Concert Attack Suspect Put in Pre-Trial Detention

A ninth suspect in the deadly Moscow region concert hall attack has been placed in pre-trial detention on terrorism charges, the court system’s press service said Friday.

Moscow’s Basmanny District court ruled to keep Lutfulloi Nazrimad, a native of Tajikistan, in custody until May 22.

Videos shared by the press service showed Lutfulloi kneeling behind a defendant’s glass cage, his face hidden from view.

He pleaded guilty to some of the charges, his lawyer told state media without clarifying whether he was accused of more crimes in addition to terrorism.

According to Interfax, 24-year-old Lutfulloi was arrested on Saturday — the day after the concert hall massacre — during searches for accomplices.

Another Moscow court had reportedly ordered on Monday to place him under arrest for 15 days on charges of petty hooliganism.

Russian authorities said Saturday that 11 people, including four gunmen, had been arrested on terrorism charges. Besides Lutfulloi, eight of the suspects have been remanded into custody in the ongoing terrorism probe.

On Thursday, Russia’s top investigative body said a ninth suspected “financier” was arrested. It was not immediately clear whether the financier and Lutfulloi were the same person.

Interfax, citing court documents, described Lutfulloi as unemployed, having a degree in higher education, registered in Tajikistan and temporarily living at a hostel on the east side of Moscow.

Islamic State affiliate ISIS-K claimed responsibility for the Crocus City Hall massacre, in which at least 144 people were killed and 382 others were wounded.

Moscow has blamed radical Islamists, Ukraine and its Western allies for the deadliest attack in Russia since the 2004 Beslan school siege.

Russia's Investigative Committee has said it has evidence that "Ukrainian nationalists" were behind the attack and had funded the gunmen with cryptocurrency 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.

AFP contributed reporting.