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

Sentence: On October 21, 2026, the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don issued guilty verdicts to six Crimean Tatars, defendants of the so-called 'fifth Bakhchisaray group' in the 'Hizb ut-Tahrir case'. The men were sentenced to imprisonment ranging from 15 to 19 years in high-security colonies. Amethan was sentenced to 15 years in prison. Ukrainian and international human rights defenders consider the case politically motivated and link it to systemic repressions against Crimean Tatars.

Umerov Amethan was born on August 8, 1986. He is a Crimean Tatar, resident of Bakhchisaray. Before his detention, he worked as a cash collector and tour guide. He was an active participant in the civic movement 'Crimean Solidarity', which supports the families of political prisoners, highlights political repressions, 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 Bakhchisaray. Along with Amethan Umerov, Seydamet Mustafayev, Ruslan Asanov, Abdulmedzhit Seitumerov, Eldar Yakubov, and Remzi Nimetulayev were detained. The Representative Office 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 similar searches concerning 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 not been delivering letters and parcels to him for a long time. 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 'non-working printer'. 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 an inpatient psychiatric examination, after which he was returned to the detention centre. Such practice has been repeatedly used by Russian investigative bodies in cases of Crimean political prisoners and has drawn criticism from human rights organizations.

In April 2024, while Amethan was already in custody, his family welcomed their fifth child, a daughter. Due to his imprisonment, he learned about the birth of his child 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 completion of investigative actions, Amethan Umerov was transferred to Detention Centre No. 1 in Rostov-on-Don, where the so-called 'fifth Bakhchisaray Hizb ut-Tahrir case' was being considered in the Southern District Military Court. Human rights defenders emphasize that the evidence in the case is mainly based on anonymous witnesses, religious literature examinations, and recordings of private conversations, without confirming any involvement in violent actions.

On October 21, 2026, the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don sentenced Amethan Umerov to 15 years in prison.

Information used from open sources: Suspilne Crimea, Representative Office of the President of Ukraine in the Autonomous Republic of Crimea, Crimean Solidarity, Center for Journalistic Investigations.

Photo: Suspilne Crimea.

Date of update: 03.11.2026.