Investigator of the Neftekamsky Interregional Investigative Department of the Investigative Committee of the RF for the Republic of Bashkortostan Andrey Nagornov initiated a criminal case with regard to the battery of Vener Mardamshin from Neftekamsk by the police officers. Human rights defenders with the Committee for the Prevention of Torture were extremely surprised by the wording on the web site of regional Investigative Department :«the victim’s bodily injuries do not lead to impairment of health, and the experts do not regard them as harm to the health». Vener’s medical documents suggest the opposite.
Let us remind you that three weeks ago Vener Mardamshin applied to the Committee for the Prevention of Tortures for legal assistance. He said that on 10 November this year he was captured by four men who handcuffed his hands, put a plastic bag on his head, pushed into the car and drove him away in the unknown direction. According to Vener, later it turned out that those were the policemen who took him to the city police department and started to beat him using truncheons and an electric shocker, and forcing him to confess in kidnapping a woman. However, the attempts of the policemen to force Vener give a confession to the crime were unsuccessful and they released him, having taken an explanatory statement from him that he had been drinking alcohol with his friends and had no claims to the policemen.
According to Mardamshin, an acquaintance of him helped him to get home. His wife called an ambulance, and the man was taken to the hospital in Neftekamsk, where he was receiving treatment until 21 November, and then was transferred to the hospital of Ufa. Totally, Mardamshin was receiving hospital treatment for twenty seven days. The doctors of Neftekamsk hospital registered the following diagnosis in the discharge summary of the sick person: “Concomitant injury, closed craniocerebral injury. Brain concussion. Concussion of cervical vertebrae. Closed compression fracture of the body of vertebra L1. Closed (old?) fracture of L1 spine vertebra on the right. Concussion of the left side of the pelvis. Both kidneys contusion. Gross hematuria. Numerous concussions, bruises, scratch marks and pinpoint wounds of the soft tissues of the head, body, upper and lower limbs. Post-traumatic ischemic neuropathy of radial nerve of the left forearm. Post-traumatic ischemic neuropathy of the fibular nerve of the left lower leg.” .
On 12 November Gulnaz Mardamshina (Vener’s wife) applied to Neftekamsk inter-regional investigation department of Investigation Division of Investigation Committee of the Russian Federation for the Republic of Bashkortostan with the crime report. A month later investigator if this department Andrey Nagornov passed a resolution to open a criminal case upon the signs of the crime under the items “a, b” Part 3, Article 286 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (“Abuse of office using violence and special equipment”).
«We are, definitely, satisfied that the criminal case is opened, however, it is only intermediate success. What is more, we are extremely surprised that, according to the news article on the website of the regional Investigative Department, dedicated to initiating the criminal case, «the victim’s bodily injuries do not lead to impairment of health, and the experts do not regard them as harm to the health». Meanwhile, the discharge summaries from two hospitals where Victor underwent treatment for twenty seven days, mention brain concussion and closed compression fracture of the body of vertebra L1, among other traumas, – lawyer of the Committee for the Prevention of Torture Evgeny Litvinov says. – Certainly, we will lodge a motion for forensic medical examination, and we also lodge a number of other motions in the framework of the initiated criminal case, continuing to represent Mardamshin’s interests».