On December 3rd, the trial of the suspected murders of Umar Israilov continued in the Vienna State Criminal Court. Israilov’s widow and father were heard as witnesses.

According to the Austrian media, both of the witnesses described how Umar was pursued by Kadyrov.

Sharpuddi Israilov, Umar’s father, explained his son’s story and the reasons behind the torture he faced.

Malika Israilova, Umar’s widow, explained that her husband was threatened repeatedly.

“Kadyrov put Umar’s father in prison, tortured him and threatened Umar, saying ‘if you don’t come back, I will destroy your whole family.’ Then he sent a messenger to Vienna. The messenger said: ‘If you don’t come back, there are two people who are quite hungry to kill you,” said Malika.

Umar Israilov had actually tried to obtain police protection several times since the summer of 2008, but the Austrian police did not take his requests seriously.

“Umar told me, ‘you will see, the police will come only after my death.’ He was afraid, so he bought a gun for himself,” said Malika.

“Anyone who has a head on his shoulders knows that Kadyrov killed this innocent man,” she concluded.

*Text was written by Waynakh Online and edited by Michael Capobianco