Telegraph: Russia called to probe police role in Magnitsky death
April 23, 2010
Mr Magnitsky, who represented Hermitage Capital Management, the hedge fund run by Bill Browder, died in prison after being held for 358 days without trial on tax evasion charges.
He had previously testified about the involvement of Russian police officers in the alleged theft of $230m (£150m) of taxpayer funds. An investigation was launched into his death following public outcry, but its focus was on the failure of the On Thursday, Lyudmila Alekseyeva, the founder of the independent Moscow Helsinki Group, called for an inquiry into the police officers alleged to have brought “the criminal case against Mr Magnitsky and used torture against him”.
She claimed prison officials denied Mr Magnitsky medical assistance once he developed pancreatitis “specifically on their instruction and with their direct knowledge”. He died from complications caused by the illness he developed in jail.
Mr Magnitsky documented his alleged torture in 450 complaints written while in prison. He was arrested in 2008 after making allegations against Mr Kuznetsov and died in a squalid Moscow jail the following November. The 37-year-old father of two made his claims after investigating a $230m tax fraud using companies stolen from Hermitage.
Ms Alekseyeva is demanding an investigation on the grounds that the Mr Magnitsky’s treatment broke Russia’s obligations set out under Article 12 of the UN Convention Against Torture.
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