MOSCOW, June 11. /TASS/. The cases in which Russian citizens succumb to efforts by Islamic State recruiters are still few, Investigative Committee spokesman Vladimir Markin said in an interview to the Rossiya-1 television channel following the detention of a Russian university student, 19-year-old Varvara Karaulova, in Turkey.
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Asked by the interviewer if many recruitment attempts were exposed in Russia of late, Markin replied: "I would not say that massive recruitment is the issue of the day."
"Most probably we are witnesses to casual incidents, which become promptly known to the law enforcement agencies," Markin said.
He recalled that in Dagestan a local court was about to hear a criminal case against one Gadzhimagomedov, who back in 2013 underwent training in the Middle East and alongside other militants was fighting for the Islamic State against government troops in Syria.
"There was a number of other examples of Russian citizens’ involvement in that organization. Most of the recruits were from Russia’s North Caucasus regions," Markin said.
"A number of criminal cases are being investigated against recruiters, who select potential members of illegal armed gangs," Markin said, adding that the suspects are known to have been looking for recruits in other regions.
He recalled that Russia’s Supreme Court had outlawed the Islamic State as a terrorist organization and in case of a person’s participation in the activity of that organization such actions fell under the corresponding article of the Russian Criminal Code and were punishable with prison terms of five to ten years and a fine of up to 500,000 roubles.