Chechnya

The 18-year-old son of the Chechen Head Ramzan Kadyrov, Adam Kadyrov, who has repeatedly violated traffic rules, received a jubilee medal commemorating 90 years of Russia’s Traffic Police.

The award ceremony took place in Grozny on 3 July during a festive event marking the anniversary of the establishment of the State Traffic Safety Inspectorate, attended by regional leadership and representatives of the Interior Ministry, Ramzan Kadyrov said in his Telegram channel.

Ramzan Kadyrov added that he received a medal as well along with his son. According to Kadyrov’s post, there were no other recipients of this medal at the event. The Chechen Head did not specify on what basis Adam Kadyrov and he himself were nominated for the award.

In January 2026, several independent media outlets reported a road traffic accident in Grozny involving a vehicle in which Adam Kadyrov was involved. The publications claimed that as a result of the crash he broke his jaw and had his spleen removed, while the driver of the vehicle he collided with died at the scene. Chechen authorities have denied even the fact that the accident took place.

In June, Adam Kadyrov published a video in which he is seen driving and violating a number of traffic rules. In particular, the recording shows the vehicle travelling at significant speed in excess of the limit — 112 kilometres per hour within a populated area — crossing a double solid line and entering the oncoming lane. He also uses a mobile phone while driving and is not wearing a seatbelt.

In September 2022, according to unverified reports, then-15-year-old Adam Kadyrov was involved in another accident in which two people were killed due to his driving. To conceal this, he was allegedly moved into a bodyguard’s car. When Adam Kadyrov attempted to flee the scene at high speed in that vehicle, he reportedly struck and killed another person at a pedestrian crossing.

In recent years, Adam Kadyrov was long-thought to be Ramzan Kadyrov’s preferred successor. He has regularly appeared at official events in the republic and has received state and regional awards. In the beginning of 2025, Ramzan Kadyrov appointed him as curator of Chechen Interior Ministry, and the same year he became head of the republic’s Security Council. In June 2026, he was awarded the Star of the Hero of Chechnya for the second time.

In 2023, Adam Kadyrov became widely known after a video was published showing him beating prisoner Nikita Zhuravel, who had been accused of burning the Quran, at a detention centre in Grozny. Ramzan Kadyrov said at the time that he was proud of his son’s actions and Adam Kadyrov was not held accountable for the incident.