The  I-couldn’t-care-less attitude of the Dzerzhinsk investigation authorities who have ignored the court ruling ordering them to resume investigation into the allegations of torture at the sobering-up station shocks the Dzerzhinsk judicial system.

   The Committee against Torture has been working with the case of Andrey Anikin claiming that he was beaten up at the Dzerzhinsk sobering-up station since 2008.  Since that moment the Dzerzhinsk Interdistrict Investigation Department of the Investigation Administration of the Investigation Committee under the RF Prosecutor’s Office for Nizhny Novgorod region has been inhibiting the investigation, basically, there are no investigative steps being taken at all. The last refusal to open a criminal case was issued in October 2009. In November 2009 the Dzerzhinsk city court found that refusal unlawful and unmotivated and obliged the investigators to eliminate the errors. The investigation department ignored the ruling completely. It has been four months already since the ruling entered into force; however, the investigation is still at a stall, the violations have not been eliminated. Besides, the preliminary investigation has not been resumed.

The Committee against Torture filed another complaint, this time the court found the inaction of the Dzerzhinsk investigation body and the investigator in charge unlawful.

It should be mentioned that such outrageous inaction on behalf of the investigation authorities amounts to gross dereliction of duty.  This fact is confirmed by multiple refusals to provide the materials of the check. Ignoring the court ruling does not only undermine the position of the investigation authority (Dzerzhinsk Interdistrict Investigation Department), but also breaches the fundamental rights set forth in the RF Constitution  and European Convention on Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms, destroys peoples’ trust in justice and law, prevents citizens from using their right to an effective remedy, and, therefore, gives the victim a right to apply to the ECtHR and claim compensation of damage to be paid by the Russian Federation.  

When the court ruling finding the inaction of the investigation authorities unlawful enters into force, the Committee against Torture intends to file a civil suit claiming compensation of moral damage inflicted by the lengthy investigation to Mr. Anikin.