Detention: On August 24, 2023, Russian security forces conducted mass searches in the homes of Crimean Tatar activists in Bakhchisarai. After the search, Amethan Umerov was detained and taken to the occupation FSB office. That same day, the Kyiv District 'court' of Simferopol imposed a pre-trial detention measure on him.

Sentence: As of July 22, 2026, there is no information on the verdict. The Russian Federation accuses Amethan Umerov under part 2 of article 205.5 of the Russian Criminal Code ('participation in the activities of a terrorist organization'), alleging he was a member of 'Hizb ut-Tahrir'. Ukrainian and international human rights organizations consider the case politically motivated and link it to systemic repression against Crimean Tatars.

Amethan Umerov was born on August 8, 1986. He is a Crimean Tatar, resident of Bakhchisarai. Before his detention, he worked as a cash collector and tour guide. He was an active member of the public movement 'Crimean Solidarity', which supports the families of political prisoners, highlights political repression, and engages in human rights activities in occupied Crimea. He is married and has five children.

On August 24, 2023, Russian security forces conducted a large-scale wave of searches in the homes of Crimean Tatars in Bakhchisarai. Along with Amethan Umerov, Seydamet Mustafayev, Ruslan Asanov, Abdulmedzhit Seytumerov, Eldar Yakubov, and Remzi Nimetulaev were detained. The Representation of the President of Ukraine in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea called these searches and detentions another manifestation of political repression against the indigenous Crimean Tatar people.

According to his wife Feride Khalilova, FSB officers broke into the house around four in the morning, breaking the lock on the gate. The search lasted several hours. During it, phones, computer equipment, and religious literature were seized. Human rights defenders noted the use of so-called 'professional witnesses', who regularly participate in such searches involving Crimean Tatars.

After his arrest, Amethan Umerov was placed in the Simferopol pre-trial detention centre. In October 2023, his wife reported that the detention centre administration had long withheld letters and parcels from him. Only after numerous appeals to the prosecutor's office were the parcels accepted. The political prisoner informed his lawyer that he was told the absence of letters was due to a 'printer not working'. Human rights defenders regarded these actions as additional psychological pressure on the prisoner and his family.

In November 2023, Amethan was temporarily transferred to a psychiatric hospital for a forensic psychiatric examination, after which he was returned to the detention centre. Such practices have been repeatedly used by Russian investigative bodies in cases of Crimean political prisoners and have drawn criticism from human rights organizations.

In April 2024, while Amethan was still in custody, his family welcomed their fifth child, a daughter. Due to his imprisonment, he learned of the child's birth only from his lawyer and could not be with his family. Human rights defenders noted that his children are forced to grow up without their father due to politically motivated persecution.

After the investigative actions were completed, Amethan Umerov was transferred to Pre-trial Detention Centre No. 1 in Rostov-on-Don, where the so-called 'fifth Bakhchisarai Hizb ut-Tahrir case' is being heard in the Southern District Military Court. Human rights defenders emphasize that the evidence in the case is primarily based on secret witnesses, examinations of religious literature, and recordings of private conversations, without any confirmation of involvement in violent acts.

As of July 22, 2026, Amethan Umerov remains in custody. There is no information on a verdict or his release in open sources. His case remains an example of the systemic persecution of Crimean Tatars on fabricated charges of involvement in 'Hizb ut-Tahrir'.

Information used from open sources: Suspilne Crimea, Representation of the President of Ukraine in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, Crimean Solidarity, Center for Investigative Journalism.

Photo: Suspilne Crimea.

Last updated: 22.07.2026.