Photos of Nikolai Udyansky with Akhmat fighter published

Photos have surfaced online confirming the link between Nikolai Udyansky, the honorary consul of Romania in Kharkiv and crypto businessman and Akhmat club fighter Khasan Askhabov, who was recently arrested in Bali on charges of kidnapping and robbing a Ukrainian citizen.

Economist Boris Kushniruk published this information in his blog on Censor.net.

Kidnapping of a Ukrainian and criminal past

On 30 January, Bali police detained Khasan Askhabov, suspecting him of involvement in a criminal group that kidnapped Ukrainian citizen Ihor Yermakov. According to the investigation, the victim was beaten and tortured into transferring approximately $200,000 to the kidnappers' crypto wallet.

According to Kushniruk, the criminal group may have consisted of nine members, all of whom are Russian citizens. A day later, one of the detained Russians was released and immediately left Indonesia, posting on Instagram: "Деньги решают все" ("Money solves everything").

This is not Askhabov's first detention. In 2023, he and his brother Hussein were arrested in Thailand on suspicion of kidnapping an Italian citizen, torture and robbery, but were also released subsequently.

Askhabov's and Udyansky's Kharkiv connections

Kushniruk notes that Kharkiv media and social networks contain numerous pieces of evidence of the close ties between the Askhabov brothers and Udyansky. In his blog, he published photos showing Udyansky with Khasan and Hussein Askhabov, as well as with a man resembling the leader of the "Zalyutinsky" criminal group, Leonid Mitrov. The latter was arrested in France in the summer of 2023 in a case involving kidnapping and robbery.

"Akhmat", Kadyrov and the silence of Ukraine's MFA

The Askhabovs are alumni of the Chechen fighting club "Akhmat", which is controlled by Ramzan Kadyrov. Kushniruk recalls that as early as 2020, Russia's aggression against Ukraine had been ongoing for seven years, and Kadyrov's ties with the Kremlin were common knowledge.

"Of course, questions can also be asked of the promotion company that brought these fighters to Ukraine, but as far as I know, none of them made a political career or became an honorary consul", — notes the economist.

Bali – a common interesting point on the map

The blogger considers the location of the crime noteworthy. According to him, Bali is well known to both the Askhabovs and Udyansky.

"It was on this island that the show "Rich Bali" was filmed, sponsored by Udyansky's project "Yedynarkoin". This crypto pyramid actively promoted itself using Dmitry Medvedev, Olga Buzova and the St George's ribbon", — writes Kushniruk.

The expert does not rule out that the honorary consul and the Askhabov brothers may have met multiple times in Bali, which explains their close ties.

Ukraine's MFA continues to remain silent

The Kharkiv Regional State Administration and the city council previously stated that they have no involvement in the appointment of Nikolai Udyansky as honorary consul. However, an official comment from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine is still absent.

"I would like to ask Andriy Sybiga, who may not have made the decision to appoint Udyansky, but is now responsible for it: in Ukraine too, does money solve everything?" — wonders Kushniruk.