The murder of the author of the Kadyrov cartoons has drawn attention to his work.

The death of artist Robert Kuzovkov has only increased interest in his work and given new resonance to the themes he touched on in his work, social media users noted, commenting on the murder of the author of the Kadyrov cartoons.

As reported by the "Caucasian Knot," on June 16 it became known that Russian artist Robert Kuzovkov, known under the pseudonym Semyon Skrepetsky, who drew caricatures of Ramzan Kadyrov and Vladimir Putin, was shot dead by unknown assailants in the Polish city of Biala Podlaska.

Social media users noted the increased value of Kuzovkov's work.

A post about Kuzovkov's death on June 16 was posted on the "Caucasian Knot" Facebook page*, which has about 162,000 subscribers. Users. As of 12:00 PM Moscow time on June 16, this post had garnered 2,416 likes and 1,463 comments.

"Either the Poles or the Ukrainians killed him. It's obvious to a fool. To blame the Russian authorities," wrote Pegas Farkhori.

Some users noted that the artist wasn't only mocking Russian figures. "But he also drew caricatures of Zelensky and his entire gang," wrote Igor Garev. "He's the author of the Zelensky caricatures," stated Lyudmila Kostenko.

Many users expressed sorrow over Kuzovkov's death. "I feel unbearably sorry for the man," wrote Inna Orlova. "I feel very sorry for him," noted Naida Gadzhieva. "Glory to the Master! We mourn," wrote Vladimir Telega.

Some commentators called Kuzovkov a talented and courageous man. "An excellent contemporary artist and a courageous man," said Valentina Gudina. "He fought like a warrior, with weapons in hand, against dictators around the world," wrote Igor Panichev.

A second post about Kuzovkov's death was posted on June 16 on the Caucasian Knot Facebook page*. As of 12:00 PM Moscow time on June 16, this post had garnered 995 likes and 791 comments.

Some users suggested that interest in Kuzovkov's work and its value would increase after his death.

"In time, his paintings will be worth as much as Marc Chagall's," said Viktor Senko. "A hero! His paintings will live forever," declared Susanna Ruslana Skagseth. "His name will forever remain among the great artists. We mourn," wrote Emmi Ox.

Some commenters condemned the murder and expressed sorrow over Kuzovkov's death. "It looks like they killed an honest and worthy man. Blessed memory," wrote Victoria Gnedich Poniatowska. "I feel very sorry for Semyon. Eternal memory to him," noted Igor Babich.

A post about Kuzovkov's death on June 16 was also posted on the "Caucasian Knot" Instagram page*, which has approximately 58,200 followers. As of 12:00 PM Moscow time on June 16, the post had garnered 247 likes and 225 comments.

Some users expressed condolences and praised the deceased artist. "Glory to the hero! You will forever be in our hearts," wrote otetzs. "Yes, the artist was a firecracker," noted azamat8684.

Other commentators reacted negatively to the murder itself. "I wonder if life will change for the better now that he was killed? You people are very evil; it was life that made you this way, not the artist," wrote djuletta9559.

"His art will remain stronger than the people who killed him," wrote ivanov0550203.

The Chechen authorities have been persecuting their critics abroad for many years.

Critics of the Chechen authorities have been persecuted for a long time, including abroad. Thus, in early 2020, the body of Imran Aliyev, a Chechen native and blogger known as Mansur Stary, was found with stab wounds in a hotel in the French city of Lille. Aliyev was killed by a resident of Chechnya's Gudermes district who works for a high-ranking Chechen official, Chechen blogger Tumso Abdurakhmanov later claimed. According to him, the suspected killer stayed with Imran Aliyev in Belgium for a week and then traveled to Lille with him. At the hotel, a man "put Imran to sleep by slipping him a sleeping pill, then killed him."

In July 2020, bloggers from the Chechen diaspora who criticized the Kadyrov regime reported regularly receiving threats. They reported this after the murder in Austria of Chechen native Mamikhan Umarov, known as "Anzor from Vienna."

In September 2020, a video of a naked Chechen native, Salman Tepsurkayev, sitting on a bottle, causing widespread controversy, explaining that he was doing this as punishment for collaborating with a Telegram channel critical of the Chechen authorities.

Tepsurkayev himself stated that he insulted Chechen security forces in publications. "I said that other people's mothers <...>, other people's daughters <...>, other people's wives <...>. I said very inappropriate things there. "He cursed all Chechen police officers and government officials," a "Caucasian Knot" correspondent previously translated Tepsurkaev's words.

Tepsurkaev's relatives believe that after his abduction in Gelendzhik, he was taken to the security forces' headquarters in Grozny. Tepsurkaev was killed back in September 2020 and buried in an unmarked grave, as his relatives were told to "bury him like a dog," an opposition Chechen Telegram channel noted on August 24, 2022.

"Caucasian Knot" compiled stories of the elimination of Ramzan Kadyrov's opponents in the EU in the report "Murders of Critics" Kadyrov in the EU countries".

* Meta (owner of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp) is banned in Russia.