MOSCOW, March 14. /TASS/. The Investigative Committee has charged Riad Safarov, a Moscow university student, with participating in a terrorist organization and preparing a terrorist attack, according to the case file reviewed by TASS.

"Riad Hikmetovich Safarov, born on September 10, 2006, a student and Russian citizen with no prior criminal record, is accused of committing crimes under Part 2 of Article 205.5 (participation in the activities of a terrorist organization), Part 1 of Article 30, and Part 1 of Article 205 of the Russian Criminal Code (preparation for a terrorist act)," according to one of the case documents initiated on January 23. He is currently in custody by court order.

According to the investigation files, before his arrest, Safarov lived in the village of Shcherbinka in Greater Moscow. A search of his residence uncovered a collection of knives, a pump-action shotgun, two grenades, and books on weapons and small arms combat tactics.

Safarov denies the charges. According to his defense, Safarov’s fellow students filed a misleading statement against him. The defendant's lawyers also claim that the grenades found are intended for airsoft and cannot be converted into combat arms. They assert that Safarov was interested in weapons because he planned to join a special unit of Russia's law enforcement agencies.