Life before the detention

Asan Alievich Yanikov was born on 11 September 1986 in Bekabad, Uzbekistan.

In 2000, he moved to Crimea with his family and continued his studies at School No. 31. After finishing school, due to difficult financial circumstances, he took a job as a construction labourer.

In 2017, Asan held a solo picket in protest against persecution on ethnic and religious grounds, helped organise children’s events, and coordinated deliveries for political prisoners held in pre-trial detention centres.

Persecution

On 27 March 2019, security forces carried out one of the most extensive raids on Crimean Tatars in Simferopol. That same day, they detained a group of around 25 Crimean Muslims, including Asan Yanikov. They were charged within the so-called case of the Crimean Muslims.

On 18 March 2022, a Russian “court” sentenced Asan Yanikov to 15 years’ imprisonment in a strict-regime penal colony.

Behind bars

On 7 July 2023, during an appellate hearing, Yanikov delivered his final statement. He spoke in particular about the history of repression against the Crimean Tatar people — the 1944 deportation and the persecution that followed the occupation of the peninsula in 2014.

“The events of the past have returned and become the reality of today’s Crimea. All the repression, persecution and pressure are aimed at breaking the spirit of the people and driving Muslims of Crimea from their homeland, as before.”

Later in 2023, Yanikov was transferred from Rostov-on-Don to the Vladimir region of Russia. During his imprisonment, he was restricted in contact with his family and subjected to physical force.

From the very beginning, Yanikov also reported health problems. While held in the Simferopol pre-trial detention centre, he spent two months in so-called quarantine under unsanitary conditions. As a result of improper detention conditions, his health significantly deteriorated, including worsening gastrointestinal issues. He was denied both medication and medical assistance.

In 2024, while imprisoned in Russia’s Vladimir region, Yanikov was beaten by two prison guards. Later, he was also banned from communicating with his family.

This is not an isolated case. Since 2014, Russia has systematically persecuted residents of Crimea, unlawfully detaining and sentencing them on fabricated charges. As of December 2025, the occupiers have unlawfully imprisoned 224 people, including 133 Crimean Tatars.