Russian authorities have released footage of claimed terror suspects in blindfolds being dragged into the country’s Investigation Committee headquarters in Moscow.
Four suspected gunmen involved in the terror attack in the city, which killed 137 people at a concert hall and saw the building set ablaze, have been arrested and charged.
The four men, Dalerdzhon Mirzoyev, Saidakrami Murodali Rachabalizoda, Shamsidin Fariduni and Muhammadsobir Fayzov, appeared in court with bruised and swollen faces.
Rachabalizoda’s ear was bandaged after reportedly having had part of it severed during his arrest. Fayzov appeared in a wheelchair and appeared to be missing an eye, according to Reuters.
Three of the four, with the exception of Fayzov, admitted guilt after being charged. They will be held in custody until at least May before facing a trial.
State news media has shown the capture and interrogation of the suspects following a police chase, with a faction of the extremist group Isis claiming responsibility in three different videos and messages since Friday.
This included posting an image of the four terrorists, as well as a graphic video of the gunmen entering the foyer of Crocus City Hall and opening fire on innocent civilians.
On pro-Kremlin channels, footage has emerged of one of the suspects saying he carried out the attack for money, after being recruited over the messaging app Telegram.
It comes as US vice-president Kamala Harris rejected Russian president Vladimir Putin’s claims that Ukraine was involved in the attack.
“What we know to be the case is that Isis-K is actually, by all accounts, responsible for what happened,” she said in an interview with ABC News in the US.
Addressing the nation after the deadliest attack inside the country for two decades, Mr Putin said 11 people had been detained in total as he vowed that anyone who ordered the assault at Crocus City Hall would be “justly and inevitably punished”.
Meanwhile, Jeremy Hunt warned that European countries must “remain vigilant” after the attack, which suggests the jihadist group still maintains the organising capacity for major atrocities.
Speaking to broadcasters, the chancellor described the loss of civilian life as a “tragedy” but condemned the Kremlin after it appeared to seek to link Ukraine, which Russia invaded two years ago, to the attack.
“We have very little confidence in anything the Russian government says. We know that they are creating a smokescreen of propaganda to defend an utterly evil invasion of Ukraine,” Mr Hunt said.