"There were no hopes"

History of persecution mathematician Azat Miftakhov

In early September, Azat Miftakhi had to be freed to freedom. He served his six -year term in the case of the broken window of the United Russia office. At the exit from the colony, relatives and friends met him, but he could see them only a few minutes ...

REFERENCE
30-year-old Azat Miftakhov originally from Nizhnekamsk (Tatarstan), a Russian mathematician, at the time of detention, a graduate student of the Mechanical and Mathematics Faculty of Moscow State University. The author of scientific publications since 2016. While in the Moscow pre -trial detention center, Azat continued the activities of the scientist. In June 2019, the journal “Reports of the Academy of Sciences” published his work “Differential properties of half groups and assessing distances between stationary distributions of diffusion”. In December 2020, the research work “Continuity Module for the sequence of Martingals” was released.

Before the end of the deadline, there were reports that the next business was opened against Miftakhov. But there was no specificity. Initially, Azata was detained in the case of explosives found in Balashikha - the investigation did not find any evidence, but the matter was never closed; The assumptions also surfaced that Miftakhov was going to attract the “network” in the case*. And all this was accompanied by pressure on the mathematician itself: the operatives came to him, threatened with new persecution and demanded that they testify, and put them in a schizo before liberation. But Azat refused any cooperation with the security forces. And refusals, as you know, they do not accept their threats with special cynicism.

A new business against Miftakhov was brought up for a conversation with other prisoners in front of the TV. He was detained immediately as soon as he left the colony, and the next day he was sent to a pre -trial detention center. "New" recalls the story of the persecution of mathematician anarchist and talks about his new business.

IVO in Balashikha

Even before the case appeared about the broken glass and the Palen linoleum of United Russia, Miftakhov was detained on suspicion of the manufacture of a home -made explosive device (part 1 of article 223.1 of the Criminal Code). The security forces found explosives at a bus stop in Balashikha.

On February 1, 2019, the masks came to the hostel of Moscow State University, where Miftakhov lived. During the search, several mobile phones were seized, laptop, personal belongings, and the graduate student was detained. Then 11 more people fell into the field of view of the security forces. They also came to them with searches, several activists were interrogated and then released. All this time, Miftakhov was kept in Balashikha IVS. He later stated that law enforcement officers threatened him, tried to get confessions.

According to Azat, he was assigned a screwdriver to his chest, beaten on the face, chest, and capsili on the legs. The traces of the screwdriver remained on the body. A statement of torture was recorded by the former member of the Moscow Region of the Moscow Region Valery Borschev.

However, the criminal case on the use of violence during the detention of the Investigative Committee did not institute and constantly stamped the refusal resolution for all defense statements.

For almost a day, Miftakhov was hidden from lawyer Svetlana Sidorkina. It was possible to find it only the day after the detention. Azata was transported from one police department to another, then they were kept in the isolator in the investigative department at the Balashikha Ministry of Internal Affairs. As a result, the evidence indicated the involvement of Miftakhov in the manufacture of the IEV, the investigation was not found, and the Balashikha City Court did not detain him.

Miftakhov was released, but immediately detained at the exit from the IVS on charges of attacking the United Russia office. On February 12, 2019, the Golovinsky court of Moscow arrested Azat. And the case of a home-made bomb found in Balashikha is still in limbo. In October 2020, the investigator interrogated Miftakhov as a witness, and no more investigative actions were carried out.

"Vandalism" did not work out

Late in the evening of January 31, 2018, a group of young people approached the office of the United Russia party on Onega street in the capital's district of Khovrino. Someone from the company broke the window with a hammer and threw a smoke saber into the room. In addition to the window glass, linoleum was injured - in the place where the fire was pleased, the flooring was melted. The damage to United Russia was estimated at 48 thousand rubles.

The solution to this investigative problem at first seemed simple and understandable. On February 2, a video with a broken window appeared on the social network. The video was placed in the official group of the anarchist movement "People's Self -Defense"*. On the fact of an attack on the party office, a criminal case was opened. Initially, the police qualified the actions of the attackers as vandalism (Article 214 of the Criminal Code). However, “vandalism” did not work out. As a result, the case was retrained for a more difficult article - “Hooliganism committed by a group of persons by prior conspiracy” (part 2 of article 213 of the Criminal Code).

In addition to Miftakhov in the case, Elena Gorban and Alexei Kobaidze were detained in the case. Both gave confession, after which they were released under a recognizance not to leave. Later, two other suspects were detained - Svyatoslav Rechkalov and Andrei Sekin. According to the investigation, Gorban broke the window with a hammer, Kobaidze threw a smoke into the office, Yeums took everything that was happening on the video, Rechkalov published a record on the Internet, and Miftakhov stood near the situation.

Later, Rechkalov told the PMC members about torture: after the detention, he was put on a bag on his head and beaten by a stamper. Under pressure, he was forced to testify that he is the leader of "folk self -defense." The security forces recks the Azat itself to this movement.

Rechkalov left the country and received political asylum in France. Fearing a real term, Kobaidze also left Russia. Their affairs are allocated into separate production. And the materials on Miftakhov, Gorban and Herykin were transferred to the Golovinsky court for consideration on the merits.

Everyone who subsequently studied the graduate student-from journalists to the world-famous scientists of mathematicians-asked the same question: what caused such an irreconcilable desire to take a unit from the initial accusation, replacing the 214th article with a heavy-213rd?

Linoleum burned in the office did not rise in price in the price of United Russia, there were no injured in the case, no one lost consciousness from the ringing of broken glass. Why was it tougher?

Miftakhov himself is sure that he was pursued for anarchist views, and retraining in the case occurred because of him. The graduate student of the Mehmat was already “on a pencil” with the security forces. In 2018, Miftakhov and friends walked along the 3rd Tverskaya-Yamskaya street in Moscow and defeated the cameras of street video surveillance. One of the policeman who caught up with the policeman sprinkled in the face of the spray can. An employee of the Ministry of Internal Affairs received burns of the eyelids and eyes, against Miftakhov and his comrade opened the case for the use of violence to a police officer (part 1 of article 318 of the Criminal Code). The Tver court of Moscow sentenced a mathematician to a fine of 45 thousand rubles. And the investigation in the case of a broken window constantly appealed to the fact that the criminal record was not extinguished, and each time they demanded the extension of the guards to Miftakhov.

They pulled over "expressive eyebrows"

The charge in the criminal case for "hooliganism" was held on the testimony of secret witnesses. One of them was hidden under the pseudonym "Andrei Ivanovich Petrov." The witness claimed that on the night of January 31, he saw a group of young people on Onega Street near the United Russia office. They attracted his attention, and “Petrov” decided to follow them.

This character itself is an equation with three unknown people. In the criminal case of Petrov, it arose a year later after a smoke bomb flew into the window of United Russia's office. According to his testimony, he remembered this incident when he saw Miftakhov on TV in the story of the news.

And only then did Petrov recognize him by “expressive eyebrows”. The defense insisted that Petrov could not identify any of the participants in the action, being far away in the dark.

In the court of the witness "Petrov" could not be interrogated. It became known that he died "from a heart attack." “On January 15, 2020, the secret witness Petrov died,” said Sidorkina's lawyer. - This became known, since the secret witness with the same data, passing in the artillery preparation case ** also died. The dates of death in both matters coincide. ”

In the case, there was still a completely living secret witness under the pseudonym Karaulol. According to him, he met Miftakhov in 2015 at one of the protest actions, which was organized by “folk self -defense”. The witness called Azat "a well -read, ideological anarchist, ready to sacrifice personal goals for the sake of a common goal." The guard also added that Miftakhov at one time was a moderator of the Public Self -Defense public, “was engaged in a strikball unknown club” and “participated in the training events of anarchists in combat training, a knife battle, including training, where receptions against police officers were worked out.” The witness did not say anything more about Miftakhov, he did not know anything about the attack on the office of United Russia.

Thousands of mathematicians around the world, including leaders of science of the first magnitude, stood up to defense of Miftakhov. Scientists are sure: the line of accusations is pale and intermittent, and inconsistencies in the evidence collected do not fit into any formulas and laws of logic.

The signatures under the letter put more than two and a half thousand mathematicians and workers from various fields of science from around the world. Among them are scientists with world names: Professor of Massachusetts Technological University (USA) NOAM Khomsky, chief researcher at the Mathematical Institute named after V.A. Steklov RAS Academician Sergey Konyagin, professor at the University of Toronto (Canada) Alexander Bryverman, chief researcher at the Mathematical Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, doctor of physical and mathematical sciences, president of the Moscow mathematical community, academician Victor Vasiliev.

The letter was signed by scientists from the universities of Russia, Brazil, France, Canada, and Great Britain from 15 countries. People of science, accustomed to living and working according to the basic laws of logic, still do not understand how the result has managed to turn a crime of minor gravity into a serious one. Scientists were so angry that they demanded that the International Congress of mathematicians intervene in what was happening with their colleague under the threat of boycott one of the meetings in St. Petersburg.

But judge Sergei Bazarov was adamant and completely agreed with the prosecution. On January 18, 2021, Miftakhov was sentenced to six years in a general regime colony. Gorban and Yequin were appointed four and two years conditionally with a trial period, respectively.

Moscow cell "Network"*

While Miftakhov was kept in the bottle pre -trial detention center, he managed to sign with the hunchback. Later, the cassation instance softened the verdict - and instead of six years in prison, Azatom was appointed five years and nine months. Then he was transferred to IK-17 of the Kirov region. For all this time that he was in custody, operational employees and investigators came to him several times: they tried to conduct a survey about the Balashikh explosives, also interrogated on other criminal cases. Each time, Miftakhov refused to communicate with them.

In February of this year, TASS, with reference to sources in law enforcement agencies, reported that the FSB opened the case of the “Moscow cell” “Network” and was conducting an audit of Azat. Allegedly, one of the defendants in the case testified against him. Then searches were held in Moscow.

REFERENCE
The FSB opened a criminal case on the "terrorist community" Network "in October 2017. According to investigators, the accused planned during the presidential election and the World Cup with the help of explosions to “swing the masses to further destabilize the political situation in the country” and arrange an armed rebellion. Many of the accused talked about torture and pressure. According to the FSB, the cells of the "Network" were allegedly in Penza, St. Petersburg, Moscow and Minsk.

The Miftakhov support group suggested that the activity of the security forces could be caused by the fact that the term of conclusion of Azat was coming to an end. And the next case against mathematics may be the testimony of the St. Petersburg ex-genurant of the “Network” Igor Shishkin. In 2019, he made a deal with the investigation, testified against the “accomplices” and received a minimum period among other persons. After the release, Shishkin left Russia and said that he really testified to Azat as a secret witness as part of the network. Shishkin told the security forces that Miftakhov allegedly attended the event in the Moscow region, where there were “network cells”, but emphasized that the guys from Moscow were not there.

Five minutes free

In August, it became known that Miftakhov was introduced into the register of Rosfinmonitoring of “terrorists and extremists”, then it became obvious - Azat would not be released. RTVI said that a new criminal case was opened against mathematics. The reason for the persecution was Miftakhov’s comments when viewing a television program in the circle of prisoners. On August 31, the Azat support group said that the case was opened due to a conversation about the anarchist Mikhail Zhlobitsky, who committed the attack: self-departure in the Arkhangelsk Department of the FSB in October 2018.

The key testimony against Miftakhov was given by a prisoner by the name of Trushkov, with whom Azat made friends in the colony. It was not without a secret witness, who stated during interrogation that Miftakhov allegedly approved the act of Zlobitsky in an interview with Trushkov. The three prisoners of IK-17 were also witnesses. All of them during interrogation said that after liberation, the mathematician was about to leave the country. “He said that he would continue the struggle, but for this it is necessary to leave Russia,” the case file says.

Friends and relatives of Miftakhov still arrived on September 4 to meet the Azat to Kirov’s colony. Together with them, the mathematicians were waiting for five operatives at the white van Fiat Ducato with Chechen numbers. “They laughed at us and showed the faki,” said Azat's friends.

The operatives put the van at the checkpoint itself, and the people from the support group were driven off by the barrier, so they were able to see Azat only “for a fraction of a second”.

Azatu was allowed to talk with his relatives for only five minutes and then immediately taken to Kirov for interrogation. On September 5, the Pervomaisky District Court arrested Miftakhov for two months on charges of justifying terrorism (Article 205.2 of the Criminal Code).

“Nothing unexpected, we all had already passed it, there were no hopes from the moment the investigator came to Azatu before his release,” Elena Gorban told reporters Miftakhova. - Then the whole story began with the case of the "network". Apparently, the only thing they had enough was such an obvious trick. We can say that they could not cope, again a classified third witness in the case. Although they suffered two unfortunate prisoners, they still could not cope without crutches. ”

* The organization is recognized as terrorist and prohibited in the Russian Federation.

** The organization is recognized as extremist and its activities are prohibited in the Russian Federation.