An appalling fatal attack on a young immigrant barber in broad daylight in Moscow was captured on film and uploaded online, causing outrage. The attacker, reportedly a dissatisfied customer who paid around $ 3.50 for the haircut, has since been detained.
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The story was initially shared by State Duma MP Anton Belyakov on his Facebook page. Belyakov says that one of his friends knew the victim and characterized him as a very skillful barber.
The account describes the victim, known as ‘Danya’ among colleagues, as an unassuming young man from the central Asian Republic of Uzbekistan. Media reports have identified him as 24-year-old Dastan Adekhanov.
Belyakov wrote that the conflict began after Adekhanov gave a male client a haircut, charging him 200 rubles ($ 3.49) on Thursday – a low price by Moscow standards.
The client was apparently dissatisfied and came back to complain on Friday.
“He [the client] said that he looked in the mirror and didn’t like his haircut,” Belyakov said.
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The barbershop staff attempted to resolve the situation and improve his haircut, but the client did not like any of the options.
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Instead of asking for his money back, the man suddenly dragged Dastan into the street.
Footage of the attack, uploaded by Belyakov to Facebook and YouTube, shows a young man in a black jacket being chased by a man in yellow T-shirt with what appears to be a long sharp object in his hand, reportedly a skewer. The attacker appears to stab the young man several times while onlookers stop to watch but do not intervene.
The man then walks away, leaving the victim in agony, and turns to walk back moments later to check on him. Moments later, the young man collapses and remains motionless. He reportedly died before an ambulance arrived.
While the authenticity of the video has not yet been verified, it has been partly confirmed by investigators. Russia’s Investigative Committee said in a statement on its website that a criminal case has been opened against a 26-year-old man who has been charged with murder. The statement, which did not disclose the names but said the victim was a 24-year-old man, said the attacker has been arrested and has confessed.
A police source told TASS on Sunday that the attacker was an unemployed resident of Russia’s Kirov Region.
Belyakov’s post and media reports that followed caused outrage online in Russia, with many condemning the suspected murderer and wondering why passersby did not intervene. Belyakov titled the video ‘On thugs and gastarbeiters [migrant workers]. A murder for 200 rubles.’
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