The NN Committee Against Torture has just preliminary examined the complaint of the mother of one of the offended boys – Marina Andronova, which submitted that her son Dmitry had been beaten by law enforcement officers in Pavlovo. 

    In his interview with experts of the Committee Dmitry Andronov stated that during the New Year holidays he had visited his grandmother who lived in Pavlovo. In the morning of 7 January 2007 his friend Igor Gorokhov phoned him, saying that he wanted to meet in Chapaev Street. From Igor’s SMS message Dmitry learned that at the place of their meeting some law enforcement officers were waiting for him. So Dmitry did not go alone to Chapaev Street but accompanied by his friend Andrey.

    There, near a metal girder Dmitry saw Igor with three unknown men, who were drinking beer. Having come to the girder Dmitry greeted the men. One of them who wore a sports jacket introduced himself to Dmitry as chief of the criminal investigation department Chen and drew him aside. Then he took Dmitry by his neck and stroke several blows at his stomach and chest. Then they returned to the girder. Mr. Chen took a plastic bottle with beer from another man and struck with it on Dmitry’s and Igor’s heads.

              In the photo: victim Igor Gorokhov

    At that time some teenage boys with boxing-gloves were passing by. Mr. Chen asked one boy to give him a glove, put it on his hand and stroke several blows with it on Dmitry and Igor. The other men who wore a jacket with fur collar (as it turned out later it had been senior investigator of the Pavlovo City Prosecutor’s Office Skokov) took another boxing-glove from the boys and, having put it on his hand, struck Dmitry several times on his head. When Dmitry tried to get up the third man (Mr. Koblov, as it turned out later, who was not a law enforcement officer) struck Dmitry with his hand on the back and on the right hip. Citizens from the nearby houses were watching all what was going on near the girder through their windows.

   Then Dmitry and Igor were put in a police car. Dmitry was taken to the local police station (ROVD) and Igor was brought to the local prosecutor’s office. In the ROVD Dmitry was kept in custody, with no necessary records being made. In two hours Dmitry was brought to the Pavlovo City Prosecutor’s Office, where investigator Skokov, being still drunk, demanded a confession from him. When Dmitry refused he began beating him. Being afraid for his life Dmitry had to type on a computer under the investigator’s demand and dictation a confession to the rape.

   As a result of unlawful actions of senior investigator of the Pavlovo City Prosecutor’s Office Skokov and deputy chief of the criminal investigation department Chen, Dmitry became physically injured (brain concussion, chest contusion, bruises etc.) what was medically documented. On 8 January 2007 Marina Andronova applied to the police with a complaint about the ill-treatment by the law enforcement officers from Pavlovo, Mrs. Skokov and Chen, in respect of her minor son.

   The Committee Against Torture is going to apply to the Prosecutor of Nizhny Novgorod Region Mr. Maksimenko and ask him to inquire into the event.

(The names of the law enforcement officers, which took part in the incident, are false according the law).