Russian authorities have opened a criminal investigation following a violent assault on Uzbek migrants in Vladivostok, carried out by a group of teenagers. The incident, which occurred several days ago, was recorded on video and widely circulated on social media, sparking public outrage. The footage shows the young attackers beating the migrants, mocking them, and shouting insults while one of them filmed and laughed.
According to the press service of the Investigative Committee of Russia for Primorsky Krai, the assault took place during the night of September 10 on Khabarovskaya Street. Investigators reported that the 15-year-old suspects, allegedly intoxicated, first damaged a parked car and sprayed an aerosol can inside it before attacking the driver. They later entered a 24-hour store and beat another man in front of staff and customers. The group also assaulted a truck driver, a taxi driver, and his passenger, using stones and other objects as weapons while shouting loudly in the street.
The committee confirmed that one suspect has been detained, while two others remain at large. All are described in police records as negatively characterized, and at least one is already on trial in a separate hooliganism case stemming from an incident at a local store. If convicted, the suspects could face up to seven years in prison under Article 213, Part 2, of Russia’s Criminal Code, which addresses aggravated hooliganism.
Uzbekistan’s Consul General in Vladivostok, Yusuf Qobiljonov, stated that the victims filed an official complaint with local police. Diplomatic notes have also been sent to Russia’s Foreign Ministry office in Vladivostok and the Primorsky Krai Prosecutor’s Office, urging authorities to take appropriate measures. Qobiljonov emphasized that the case is being closely monitored by both the Uzbek consulate and Russian law enforcement agencies.
