On December 15, 2011, Khadzhimurad Kamalov, the founder of the Chernovik newspaper, was murdered in Makhachkala. Fourteen years after the tragedy, the Military Collegium of the Supreme Court of Russia upheld the sentences of those found guilty of the murder.

Three perpetrators, along with former Deputy Prime Minister of Dagestan Shamil Isayev, were convicted of organizing the massacre, which the court and investigators believed was motivated by revenge for critical publications. By the time the appeals were heard, Isayev had already participated in the SVO (special military unit), where he was wounded, and one of the convicted perpetrators died in custody.

The sentence, handed down in 2022 by the Southern District Military Court, stipulates 16 years in prison for Isayev and terms of 16 to 24 years for the perpetrators. According to investigators, Isaev ordered the murder because of Kamalov's publications, which were hindering his political career. However, the victim's brother, Magdi Kamalov, expressed doubts about the involvement of most of the convicted men.