Seda was facing the prospect of a forced marriage, just like her sisters. Refusing to accept this imposed fate led to conflict within her family. Her mother constantly monitored her phone, searched her belongings, and forbade her from going out after work.

Determined to escape, Seda sought help from NC SOS and successfully relocated from Chechnya to St. Petersburg. However, her brother soon tried to track her down, confronting her at the coffee shop where she worked and demanding that she return home. Seda managed to flee from him, subsequently changing her job, residence, and phone number.

In August 2023, police officers from St. Petersburg, accompanied by Chechen law enforcement in civilian clothes, arrived at Seda’s home where she lived with her partner. They took her into custody, informing her partner that Seda was suspected of theft and needed to be returned to Chechnya.

However, this criminal case was merely a pretext for her abduction. Seda was transported to Grozny,the capital of Chechnya, where she was questioned as a witness in a purse theft that occurred while she was still in St. Petersburg. Her relatives took her into their custody, and she was denied access to her lawyer from NC SOS. Additionally, she was coerced into signing a document refusing legal protection, which should only be signed in the presence of a lawyer.

In response to public outcry, the Ombudsman for Human Rights in Chechnya released a photo of Seda, in which she appeared exhausted and dressed conservatively. The ombudsman claimed, “Suleimanova is fine.” Soon after, he posted a video in which he was seen “walking” with Seda, stating that she was “in a good mood,” although Seda remained silent throughout.

By early February 2024, two independent sources from Chechnya informed NC SOS of rumors that an “honor killing” might have been carried out against Seda. On February 6, 2024, journalists attempted to reach out to her family for information. Two relatives claimed that Seda was nearby but refused to let her speak on the phone. Later, her family began to assert that she had left home in an unknown direction. None of her relatives reported Seda’s disappearance to law enforcement.

On March 25, 2024 the Investigative Committee for Chechnya opened a criminal case regarding Seda’s disappearance, classifying it under the article for “murder.”

As of now, her whereabouts remain unknown.