Russian guard and inmate killed aboard train carrying prisoners. Reports conflict over alleged riot.

Prisoners being transferred on a Vladikavkaz–Adler train rioted in Kabardino-Balkaria, REN TV and the Telegram channel 112 reported, citing sources.The train’s emergency brake was pulled, and the prisoners then seized their guards’ weapons, the sources said. One officer from Russia’s Federal Penitentiary Service, the country’s prison agency, was killed, and three others were wounded.REN TV and 112 also reported that the prisoners barricaded themselves inside a railcar with the wounded guards. The railcar was completely surrounded, and no one escaped, their sources said. Law enforcement officers killed at least one prisoner, according to 112.The Telegram channels Mash and Baza reported a somewhat different version of events. Their sources said a prisoner being escorted to the bathroom grabbed an assault rifle from his guards and opened fire on prison service officers. One officer later died on the way to the hospital, and three others were wounded. The prisoner was killed when officers returned fire.A prison service source also denied reports of a riot in comments to TASS. The source confirmed that one prisoner had been killed while trying to escape.At Meduza, we are committed to transparency about our use of artificial intelligence in the newsroom. The story you’re reading was written by one of our living, breathing journalists and translated from Russian using an AI model configured to follow our strict editorial standards. This translation process is the result of extensive testing and refinements to ensure our English-language coverage is timely and accurate. A Meduza editor reviews every draft before publication.If you find any errors in this translation, please contact us at [email protected].To read Meduza’s exclusive content in English, please subscribe to our newsletter.