On 12 February 2016 the Novotroitskiy City Court (Orenburg region) continued to examine the case against former head of the Penal Colony Settlement No.11 Filyus Khousainov. He is charged with crime under item «а» part 3 Article 286 of the Criminal Code of the RF «Abuse of office performed using violence or threatening with violence». In the course of the last hearing judge Ekaterina Rodygina satisfied the motion of the state prosecutor asking to take the defendant into custody, since he puts pressure on the witness. The time remaining till the announcement of the verdict the defendant will spend in the detention facility.
(Photo: Philyus Khousainov, source: http://тюрьма56.рф)
As we have previously reported, according to victim Sergey Nikonorov, the former head of Penal Colony No.11 Filyus Khusainov used threats and creating unbearable conditions to force him and other convicts to perform construction works at his summer cottage (we wrote about this case).
Despite the fact that the criminal case related to abuse of office was initiated back in April of last year, the active stage of the investigation started only by summer of 2015 thanks to human rights defenders.
For example, for over two years the check of the testimonies was not conducted on site, but when the investigative team in the end was established in October 2015 in order to conduct this investigative activity, it met resistance from Khusainov’s subordinates, and a criminal case was initiated in this regard. In the end the investigative activity was conducted, victim Sergey Nikonorov showed in detail everything that he had previously reported to the investigation, as well as demonstrated the trace from the shot fired by Khusainov as a threat, forcing Sergey to work.
«In the course of the court hearing on 12 February the testimony was given by a classified witness under pseudonym «Choubarov», the former colony officer. According to him, in summer of 2012 he personally drove the convicts to the construction site which was performed on the land lot owned by Khousainov, and at Khousainov’s order. All the penal colony officers knew about this construction and called it «facility X». «Choubarov» mentioned names of other penal colony officers who visited the construction in different capacity, were aware of the illegal status of the construction and in effect assisted Khousainov in his crime. But the highlight of the «secret» witness was a totally new fact. Among other things «Choubarov» reported that on 9 February of this year Khousainov came to his place, showed him his «classified» testimony and asked: «Why did you testify against me and what are we going to do about it?» To the question of the state prosecutor whether Choubarov treated these words as a threat, Choubarov answered affirmatively. Upon the completion of the questioning the state prosecutor submitted a motion to change Khousainov’s measure of restraint to taking into custody, considering that while being out of prison the defendant will continue to put pressure on witnesses.
The city prosecutor Vladimir Latyshev participated in the court hearing, he supported the request to put Khousainov to detention facility.
Defendant Khousainov admitted the fact of this visit to the classified witness, but in explanation of his action he said that, allegedly, «Choubarov» had previously promised him to be a witness of defense, and that he visited him as a witness of defense in order to discuss the prospects of his taking part in the court hearing. These arguments did not soften the view of judge Ekaterina Rodygina and she sustained the prosecutor’s motion. The second part of the hearing the defendant spent in a cage and after the hearing he did not go home as usual, but was taken to the detention facility.
The next court hearing is planned for 18 and 19 February 2016, informed Vyacheslav Dyundin, a member of the Committee for Prevention of Torture, representing the interests of victim Sergey Nikonorov.