Investigative Committee experts did not find any signs of a threat in the anonymous messages received by the lawyer because of the video of torture in IK-1 of Yaroslavl

Experts found no signs of verbal aggression in anonymous messages with threats that lawyer Irina Biryukova received after the publication of a video of torture of prisoner Evgeny Makarov in IK-1 of Yaroslavl. The regional investigative committee refused to initiate a criminal case. The Public Verdict Foundation reports this.

The investigator of the first department for the investigation of particularly important cases of the Investigative Committee for the Yaroslavl region, Gennady Bobrov, made a decision to refuse to initiate a case of death threats almost seven months ago, but Biryukova received the documents only now.

As part of the investigation, the investigation carried out a linguistic examination of the messages that Biryukova received after the publication in the media of a video of the torture of her client Makarov. Experts from the Investigative Committee came to the conclusion that “it is impossible to establish signs of verbal aggression in the form of a threat” in the texts: “We will take revenge,” “You will regret that this video appeared,” “You will all be finished,” and other messages, including offensive ones.

At Biryukova’s request, a similar check was carried out by the regional department of the FSB and the internal security department of the Federal Penitentiary Service. Both departments also did not find “reliable facts confirming that threats were made against the lawyer or members of her family by any of the employees of the Federal Penitentiary Service in the Yaroslavl Region,” the Public Verdict reported.

Due to the threats received, Biryukova was forced to leave Russia and ask for state protection. She was granted protection only four months later.

A video of the torture of former prisoner Makarov by employees of correctional colony No. 1 in Yaroslavl was published in July 2018 by Novaya Gazeta. In the video, several men in camouflage uniforms beat Makarov on the shins and heels with rubber batons, pour water from a bucket on his head, tear off his clothes, force him to his knees, and hit him in the face. On August 8, Makarov was handed a decree recognizing him as a victim in a criminal case regarding abuse of official powers by colony employees. In this regard, he was granted state protection.

In February, the former head of Yaroslavl IK-1, Dmitry Nikolaev, was detained in the case of torture of prisoners. Other arrested colony employees gave evidence against Nikolaev: they stated that torture was applied to Makarov after the approval of Nikolaev and his deputy in June 2017. The employees handed over the recording of the torture to Nikolaev as a report on the work done.

The total number of persons involved in the torture case is 12 people, of which 11 were arrested, including the deputy head of the colony, Ivan Kalashnikov. 17 employees of the Yaroslavl colony were suspended from work.

Makarov was released in October 2018 and is under administrative supervision. In July 2019, Makarov was placed in a pre-trial detention center for 10 days for violating supervision rules - he was supposed to be at home after 10 p.m., but inspectors found him in a car near the entrance.