Dubai: The mastermind behind the assassination of Sulim Yamadayev - who was assassinated last week at the parking lot of Jumeirah Beach Residence (JBR) in Dubai - is the Deputy Prime Minister of Chechnya, the Dubai Police Chief said.
Lt. Gen. Dahi Khalfan Tamim announced at press conference today that they have obtained a confession from the two suspects currently in custody.
The suspects' statement points the finger at Chechen strongman Adam Delmikhanov, Deputy Prime Minister of Chechnya, as the person who planned the crime and provided the murder weapon.
“This was a political assassination and a matter of settling the score,'' said Tamim. “We don't welcome criminals here and we will not allow anyone to jeopardise our security. There will be no immunity or security for a person who plans such a heinous crime.''
According to Dubai, six people were involved in the murder, including Delmikhanov.
Iranian national, Mahdi L., and Tajik, Makhsood J., were the Dubai contacts who were arrested by Dubai Police.
Brothers Torbal K., a Russian, and Salman K., a Kazakh, along with Zalim K., also Russian, fled the country six hours after the crime was committed, said the official.
Tamim announced that they have already placed the name of the four suspects, including Dalmikhanov, on the Interpol wanted list.
The UAE has an extradition treaty with Russia.
Tamim added that they received no cooperation from the Chechen government with regards to the investigation.
According to the suspects' confessions, Delmikhanov brought the weapon in using his diplomatic authority and met with both Mehdi L. and Makhsood J.
Dubai Police were able to trace the weapon, a Russian-made handgun, back to one of Delmikhanov's bodyguards.
According to the confession, the five suspects followed Yamadayev from a doctor's appointment to a restaurant then finally to JBR.
But neither Mahdi L. nor Makhsood J. pulled the trigger, though one of them did give the go ahead for the kill but it is not clear who.
Yamadayev was assassinated on March 28. Police found the body in the ground floor parking lot of JBR's Rimal 6 building.
Gloves, the murder weapon and a T-shirt were recovered near the scene of the crime.
Yamadayev was buried in Al Quoz graveyard a few days after his assassination.
Yamadayev was officially dismissed from his post as commander of the Russian Defence Ministry's Vostok battalion in August 2008 over an alleged involvement in the 1998 abduction and murder of a Chechen businessman.
