On May 29, the well-known Cossack ataman Yuri Churekov was arrested in Stavropol region. Investigators suspect Churekov of illegal arms operations. Reportedly, on April 28, Churekov and another individual sold two Kalashnikov automatic rifles to undercover government agents in the city of Goryachevodsk, Churekov’s hometown. When the police stopped the ataman’s car near the city of Stavropol, they allegedly found three Kalashnikovs and a dozen hand grenades. Churekov presumably obtained the cache of weapons in eastern Ukraine and intended to resell them in Russia (TASS, June 3). According to the newspaper Kommersant, Churekov had a dozen Kalashnikovs in his car …read more
Source: The Jamestown Foundation
