On March 22 theCommitteeAgainstTorturehasreceivedanapplicationfromNizhnyNovgorodresidentDmitryKrutovallegingcruelbeatingsbythepolice. He reached the CAT after calling the hotline organized by human rights NGO Agora (recognized as an undesirable organization) after the incident in the Dalny police department in Kazan.
According to the victim, on February 12 this year he quarrelled with his wife, and around 3 p.m. wife’s relatives called in the police. Law enforcers took Dmitry to police department no.5 located in the Nizhegorodsky district of Nizhny Novgorod. There they knocked him down and cruelly beat him, after that Krutov was taken to hospital. Around 7 p.m. the victim was released and went home.
At home he felt worse and fainted several times during the night. The following morning Dmitry’s mother summoned an ambulance which took Dmitry to hospital where he had an urgent surgery. During the surgery he experienced clinical death, and it was not easy to resuscitate him, as Dmitry had lost a lot of blood due to internal injuries. At present Krutov is still in hospital.
Surprisingly, the Nizhegorodsky District Investigation Department of Nizhny Novgorod promptly instigated criminal proceedings in connection with this incident, unlike many other cases of police abuse, and Dmitry was acknowledged victim. Apparently, just like their Kazan colleagues, Nizhny Novgorod investigative authorities initiate criminal proceedings under allegations of torture only when it is absolutely impossible to ignore the crime, and the victim is either dead or disabled.
You may remember that it is not the first time that investigators deal with policemen from the 5th police department. In 2008 Emil Dadashov lost three teeth while visiting that unfortunate place. In 2009 law enforcers from that department tortured Alexey Yakimov and tried to drown him in the Volga. Both cases resulted in convictions and perpetrators were sentenced to imprisonment. However, none of the department heads was held even disciplinary liable. We hope that after the incident with Dmitry Krutov the Interior Ministry will reconsider its tolerant attitude towards heads of departments where such outrages take place.