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Months after a motorcade crash, Chechen leader Ramzan Kadyrov’s son flaunts reckless driving on camera

Source: Verstka

Adam Kadyrov, the son of Chechnya’s longtime leader, posted a 13-second video of himself behind the wheel of a Range Rover to an Instagram account linked to him, the independent Russian news outlet Verstka reported.

Shot from a first-person perspective, the clip opens with Kadyrov pointing the camera at the road before turning it on himself and his passenger. In those 13 seconds, Kadyrov’s son manages to commit several traffic violations:

  • Kadyrov uses his phone while driving.
  • His car crosses a double solid line and moves into oncoming traffic.
  • By the end of the clip, Kadyrov’s car is traveling at 112 kilometers per hour (about 70 miles per hour) through the city — more than twice the 50-kilometer-per-hour (31-mile-per-hour) speed limit visible on a sign in the frame.
  • Additionally, as Meduza’s readers noted, Kadyrov and his passenger are not wearing seatbelts.

Crossing a double solid line is a serious traffic violation that can result in the loss of a driver’s license. Driving at that speed falls under an administrative code provision that also carries a license suspension of four to six months. Using a phone while driving carries a fine of 1,500 rubles.

In early 2026, reports emerged that Adam Kadyrov had been involved in a car crash in Grozny. According to a source cited by Kavkaz.Realii, the vehicle the Chechen leader’s son was driving struck a barrier at a very high speed, and the motorcade vehicles following it collided with one another. Novaya Gazeta Europe reported that vehicles in Kadyrov’s motorcade had struck another car, killing its driver.

Ramzan Kadyrov dismissed reports of his son’s crash as a “plant.” No official announcement of the accident was ever made.

Adam Kadyrov had been named a likely successor to his father as head of Chechnya. In March, Novaya Gazeta Europe reported that Adam was no longer being considered for that role, as attitudes toward him had changed after the crash.

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