Moscow — Shocking scenes unfolded in a Moscow court as four men accused of orchestrating the deadly attack on a concert hall in Russia, which claimed the lives of over 130 people, appeared before the judge. The suspects showed visible signs of severe beatings, with one of them barely conscious during the proceedings.
The individuals identified as Dalerdzhon Mirzoyev (32), Saidakrami Rachabalizoda (30), Shamsidin Fariduni (25), and Mukhammadsobir Faizov (19) were formally charged with committing a group terrorist attack that resulted in multiple fatalities. If found guilty, they could face a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.
Given the seriousness of the charges, the court ruled that the accused, all hailing from Tajikistan, should remain in pre-trial detention until May 22.
The Fourth Suspect Appears in Court
Faizov, the fourth suspect in the recent attack, was brought to court from a hospital in a wheelchair. Throughout the proceedings, he sat with his eyes closed, attended by medics. Faizov wore a hospital gown and trousers, displaying multiple cuts.
Mirzoyev and Rachabalizoda, two other suspects, admitted guilt for the attack after being charged.
National Day of Mourning in Russia
As Russia observed a national day of mourning for the victims of the attack at the Crocus City Hall concert venue, the death toll rose to at least 137 people.
Search and Rescue Efforts Continue
Rescuers are still searching the damaged building, with the death toll rising as more bodies are discovered. Families and friends of the missing individuals anxiously await news. Moscow's Department of Health has started identifying the bodies of the victims through DNA testing, a process expected to take at least two weeks.
The attack, claimed by an ISIS affiliate, marks the deadliest on Russian soil in recent years.
Finger pointing in full force
Russian authorities arrested the four suspected attackers Saturday, with seven more detained on suspicion of involvement in the attack, Russian President Vladimir Putin said in an address to the nation Saturday night.
Putin appears to be trying to tie Ukraine to the attack, something its government firmly denies.
He called the attack "a bloody, barbaric terrorist act" and said Russian authorities captured the four as they were trying to escape to Ukraine through a "window" prepared for them on the Ukrainian side of the border.
A United States intelligence official told CBS News the U.S. has intelligence confirming that ISIS was responsible and U.S. intelligence has no reason to doubt those claims.
The U.S. Embassy in Russia had also previously advised Americans to stay away from concert venues because of the potential of a terrorist attack. The U.S. intelligence official confirmed to CBS News that the U.S. provided intelligence to Russia regarding the potential for an attack, under the intelligence community's Duty to Warn requirement.
"ISIS bears sole responsibility for this attack. There was no Ukrainian involvement whatsoever," National Security Council spokeswoman Adrienne Watson said in a statement.
Russian media broadcast videos that apparently showed the detention and interrogation of the suspects, including one who told the cameras he was approached by an unidentified assistant of an Islamic preacher and paid to take part in the raid.
Putin didn't mention ISIS in his speech, and Kyiv accused him and other Russian politicians of falsely linking Ukraine to the assault to stoke fervor for Russia's war in Ukraine, which recently entered its third year.
The raid was a major embarrassment for Putin and happened just days after he cemented his grip on the country for another six years in a vote that followed the harshest crackdown on dissent since the Soviet times.
Some commentators on Russian social media questioned how authorities, who have relentlessly suppressed any opposition activities and muzzled independent media, failed to prevent the attack despite the U.S. warnings.
ISIS, which fought against Russia during its intervention in the Syrian civil war, has long targeted Russia. In a statement posted by the group's Aamaq news agency, the ISIS Afghanistan affiliate said it had attacked a large gathering of "Christians" in Krasnogorsk.
The group issued a new statement Saturday on Aamaq, saying the attack was carried out by four men who used automatic rifles, a pistol, knives and firebombs. It said the assailants fired at the crowd and used knives to kill some concertgoers, casting the raid as part of ISIS' ongoing war with countries it says are fighting against Islam.
In October 2015, a bomb planted by ISIS downed a Russian passenger plane over Sinai, killing all 224 people on board, most of them Russian vacationers returning from Egypt.
The group, which operates mainly in Syria and Iraq but also in Afghanistan and Africa, also has claimed responsibility for several attacks in Russia's volatile Caucasus and other regions in past years. It recruited fighters from Russia and other parts of the former Soviet Union.
As Russia mourns, frantic families of the missing seek answers
Events at cultural institutions were canceled Sunday, flags were lowered to half staff and television entertainment and advertising were suspended, according to state news agency RIA Novosti. A steady stream of people added to a makeshift memorial near the burned-out concert hall, creating a huge mound of flowers.
"People came to a concert, some people came to relax with their families, and any one of us could have been in that situation. And I want to express my condolences to all the families that were affected here and I want to pay tribute to these people," Andrey Kondakov, one of the mourners who came to lay flowers at the memorial, told the AP.
Heartbreak in Russia as Families Search for Loved Ones After Concert Tragedy
"The tragedy has deeply impacted our nation," expressed Marina Korshunova, a kindergarten employee. "It is incomprehensible that young children were involved in this incident." Among the casualties, three children lost their lives.
Igor Pogadaev is in a state of desperation as he tries to gather information about his wife, Yana Pogadaeva, who attended the concert. His last contact with her was through two photos she sent from the Crocus City Hall music venue.
"I searched everywhere, questioned everyone, showed her pictures. But no one had any information," lamented Pogadaev in a video message to the AP. He witnessed the building engulfed in flames while frantically reaching out to a hotline for updates, only to receive no news.
With the rising death toll, Pogadaev tirelessly visited hospitals in Moscow and the surrounding region, hoping to find any information about newly admitted patients.
The Moscow Region's Emergency Situations Ministry shared a video on Sunday depicting the dismantling of the damaged music venue to facilitate rescue operations.
