Detention: On March 26, 2019, Ruslan Suleimanov was detained at the administrative border with occupied Crimea at the 'Kalanchak' checkpoint and held for about seven hours. The next day, he was arrested as part of the so-called 'second Simferopol group' in the 'Hizb ut-Tahrir' case. On March 27, 2019, following mass searches of Crimean Tatar activists' homes in the Kamyanka and Strohanivka neighborhoods of Simferopol.

Sentence: On November 24, 2022, the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don sentenced Ruslan Suleimanov to 14 years in prison. He was to serve the first 4 years in prison, with the remainder in a strict regime colony, followed by 1 year of restricted freedom. The court found him guilty of 'terrorist activities' and 'preparation for violent seizure of power.' Suleimanov did not plead guilty. On February 1, 2024, the Military Court of Appeal in Vlasikha upheld the sentence.

Ruslan Suleimanov was born on April 21, 1983, in Kokand, Fergana Region, Uzbekistan, to a family of Crimean Tatars deported from Crimea in 1944. In 1993, he moved to Crimea with his family. He studied at Murom Secondary School in Bilohirsk District, graduating in 2000 with a gold medal.

In 2000, he entered the V.I. Vernadsky Tavrida National University, Faculty of Physics of Magnetic Phenomena, graduating in 2005.

From 2004 to 2006, he worked as a laboratory assistant at the Tavrida Ecological Institute in Simferopol. Later, he worked as a programmer. After his company ceased operations in Crimea, he was offered to continue his professional career abroad but chose to stay on the peninsula. He later tutored physics.

Ruslan Suleimanov actively assisted families of Crimean political prisoners, attended court hearings, supported detainees, and reported on the persecution of Crimean Tatars. He became a civic journalist and streamer for the public association 'Crimean Solidarity.'

He faced persecution for his civic activities even before his criminal imprisonment. In February 2017, he was detained near the home of Crimean Tatar activist Marlen Mustafayev and sentenced to 5 days of administrative arrest. On October 15, 2017, he held a solo picket in support of repressed Crimean Tatars, after which an occupation court fined him 10,000 rubles.

On March 26, 2019, Russian border guards detained him at the 'Kalanchak' checkpoint. After seven hours of detention, his passport was reportedly damaged, according to the Representation of the President of Ukraine in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. On March 27, Suleimanov was arrested during large-scale searches of Crimean Tatar families.

Suleimanov's case was combined with the criminal prosecution of other members of the so-called 'second Simferopol group.' He was charged under Part 2 of Article 205.5 of the Russian Criminal Code and Part 1 of Article 30, Article 278 of the Russian Criminal Code. Human rights defenders emphasize the political nature of the prosecution and the lack of substantiated evidence. The defense pointed to the use of secret witnesses and questionable expert analyses.

In June–July 2020, while in detention, Suleimanov underwent a forced forensic psychiatric examination. He was found to have a congenital heart defect and conduction issues. He also reported headaches and neck pain, as well as inadequate medical care.

In July 2020, a tragedy occurred in Ruslan Suleimanov's family. On July 24, in the village of Strohanivka, Simferopol District, his three-year-old son Musa went missing. Local residents, volunteers, and rescuers joined the search. After nearly two days, the boy was found dead in a drainage pit near the house.

On July 27, 2020, Musa was buried in Strohanivka. Ruslan Suleimanov, who was in pre-trial detention centre No. 1 in Simferopol at the time, was unable to say goodbye to his son. Lawyer Lilia Hemedzhi appealed to the FSB and investigators to allow him to attend the funeral, but the request was denied. The defense later challenged this decision.

After the sentence on November 24, 2022, Suleimanov was held in the Russian penitentiary system. In March–April 2024, he was transferred from Novocherkassk to a prison in Verkhneuralsk, Chelyabinsk Region. The transfer took 26 days. In May 2024, it was reported that the administration had placed him on preventive supervision for alleged 'tendencies towards extremism, escape, and assault.'

In May 2025, Ruslan Suleimanov was transferred to Correctional Colony No. 17 in Murmansk Region. According to ZMINA on February 23, 2026, he was there and required dental treatment. His wife reported worsening dental health and the need for cavity treatment and a crown.

As of September 11, 2026, the latest available human rights profiles from PEN Ukraine and current materials from the Representation of the President of Ukraine in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea associate him with the Russian penitentiary system. PEN Ukraine indicates the place of detention as the FSIN prison in Verkhneuralsk, Chelyabinsk Region. Meanwhile, ZMINA recorded his transfer to Murmansk Region in 2025, so his location may have changed due to further transfers.

Information used from open sources: ZMINA, Crimean Tatar Resource Center, Association of Relatives of Kremlin Political Prisoners, Suspilne Crimea, Representation of the President of Ukraine in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, Ukrainian PEN, Radio Liberty; Ukrinform, Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar People.

Photo: Association of Relatives of Kremlin Political Prisoners.

Update date: 11.09.2026.