Ramzan Kadyrov (L) with his son and presumptive heir, Adam Kadyrov. Photo: Telegram / Kadyrov
The head of the Russian North Caucasus republic of Chechnya, Ramzan Kadyrov, has hit back at reports that his youngest son Adam was involved in a serious car accident in January, calling them “fake news” during a meeting with the republic’s prosecutor, Arsan Adaev, state-owned news agency TASS reported on Monday.
“Artificial intelligence can fool anyone. The country suffered 128,000 [road] accidents and 13,009 people died, but no one cares or says anything. But a story out of nowhere about an accident involving Kadyrov’s son becomes the top story in the world news,” Kadyrov said.
Warning that though “fake news” affected Russia as a whole, the problem was particularly acute in Chechnya, Kadyrov pledged to “strengthen measures” to counter untrue stories online, TASS continued.
News of a serious car accident involving Adam Kadyrov, Kadyrov’s rumoured heir, emerged on 16 January. According to sources that spoke to Novaya Gazeta Europe, Kadyrov was airlifted to Moscow for treatment on an aeroplane provided by the Emergency Situations Ministry immediately after the accident.
Another source told Novaya Europe that he had been diagnosed with damage to the optic nerve, and was at risk of losing the sight in one eye. He is still believed to be at Moscow’s Botkin Hospital undergoing treatment.
Adam Kadyrov was accompanied by three bodyguards at the time of the accident, while Apti Iraskhanov, the nephew of Chechen Interior Minister, Aslan Iraskhanov, was at the wheel. All the passengers in the car were hospitalised. Even though the accident caused the death of the driver of a second car, it was not officially logged with the police, making it highly unlikely to result in any investigation.
The crash was not the first involving Adam Kadyrov. In September 2022, Kadyrov, then aged 15, was involved in a car crash in which two people were killed. According to one source, Adam had been driving, but was moved into another vehicle to conceal that fact. Extraordinarily, Adam then attempted to flee the scene at high speed, striking and killing another person at a pedestrian crossing.
Ramzan Kadyrov’s own well-documented health issues have significantly worsened over the past year, to the point where he has largely ceased to be involved in the day-to-day running of the republic. Despite having two other adult sons who are both older than Adam — 20-year-old Akhmat, whom he recently appointed acting deputy prime minister of Chechnya, and 19-year-old Zelimkhan — Kadyrov doesn’t appear to view either as successor material.
