Khabib speaks out against police brutality after an MMA fighter’s father was beaten to death

UFC champion Khabib Nurmagomedov has spoken out against the three police officers suspected in the murder of Sulli Yunusilau, the father of MMA fighter…

By: Karim Zidan | 4 years ago
Khabib speaks out against police brutality after an MMA fighter’s father was beaten to death
Bloody Elbow 2.0 | Anton Tabuena

UFC champion Khabib Nurmagomedov has spoken out against the three police officers suspected in the murder of Sulli Yunusilau, the father of MMA fighter Magomed Yunusilau.

According to a report from tass.ru, the three suspects violently attacked the 46-year-old man due to “personal animosity.” Yunusilau was struck in the head repeatedly before being abandoned at the scene of the crime. The man was taken to hospital, where he was diagnosed with a brain herniation and cerebral edema.

According to reports, the incident took place when the police officers were drinking while off duty. They spotted Yunusilau fighting with a local resident and decided to intervene despite the two men settling the dispute. The police officers allegedly approached Yunusilau and said “one cannot beat Russians” before attacking him. The Dagestani man attempted to hide in a pharmacy but was dragged out by the officers and beaten further.

Video footage of the brutal attack is available below:

In the aftermath of Yunsilau’s death, UFC champion Khabib Nurmagomedov took to social media to express his concerns regarding police brutality and called for the officers to be punished for their crimes.

“I do not want to criticize, insult, or hurt anyone, but how can a person be beaten to death, and have it done by law enforcers,” said Khabib. “If a man violated something, there is a law under which he is held accountable; it doesn’t say we have to beat him to death! People who enforce the law must set the example. I hope the criminals will be punished to the fullest extent of the law.”

The three police officers have since been detained on “suspicion of inflicting grievous bodily harm on a man born in the year in 1973.” The officers have been suspended from duty as the investigation takes place.


Share this story

About the author
Karim Zidan
Karim Zidan

Karim Zidan is a investigative reporter and feature writer focusing on the intersection of sports and politics. He has written for BloodyElbow since 2014 and has served as an associate editor since 2016. He also writes for The New York Times and The Guardian. Karim has been invited to speak about his work at numerous universities, including Princeton, and was a panelist at the South by Southwest (SXSW) film festival and the Oslo Freedom Forum. He also participated in the United Nations counter-terrorism conference in 2021. His reporting on Ramzan Kadyrov’s involvement in MMA, much of which was done for Bloody Elbow, has led to numerous award nominations, and was the basis of an award-winning HBO Real Sports documentary.

More from the author

Recent Stories