Sergei Magnitsky’s Mother Accuses Russian General Prosecutor of Murder

September 26, 2011

Natalia Mag­nit­skaya, the moth­er of Sergei Mag­nit­sky, has filed a crim­i­nal com­plaint against Russ­ian Gen­er­al Pros­e­cu­tor Yuri Chai­ka, senior offi­cials of the Russ­ian Inte­ri­or Min­istry, Fed­er­al Secu­ri­ty Ser­vice, Pen­i­ten­tiary Ser­vice and 11 judges for the con­spir­a­cy to mur­der her son (http://russian-untouchables.com/rus/docs/D275.pdf).

“These indi­vid­u­als and oth­ers orga­nized the repres­sive per­se­cu­tion of my son based on trumped-up charges and using fal­si­fied doc­u­ments in vio­la­tion of Arti­cles 6 and 7 of the Crim­i­nal Pro­ce­dur­al Code of the Russ­ian Fed­er­a­tion and tor­tured him and urged him to incrim­i­nate him­self and his client, and retract his ear­li­er sworn tes­ti­monies made before his arrest against the Inte­ri­or Min­istry offi­cials,” said Natalia Mag­nit­skaya in her petition.

In the peti­tion filed last week with the Russ­ian Inves­tiga­tive Com­mit­tee, Mrs Natalia Mag­nit­skaya and her lawyer Niko­lai Gorokhov, have dis­closed new evi­dence of the vio­lent death of her son in custody.

The mur­der com­plaint expos­es new­ly dis­cov­ered evi­dence from Russ­ian gov­ern­ment case files. The new doc­u­ments show that three days after Sergei Mag­nit­sky died in police cus­tody, the lead inves­ti­ga­tor from the Inves­tiga­tive Committee’s branch for Pre­o­brazhen­sky dis­trict of Moscow con­clud­ed that there was strong evi­dence that Sergei Mag­nit­sky was mur­dered (http://russian-untouchables.com/rus/docs/D276.pdf). The offi­cer rec­om­mend­ed open­ing a mur­der inves­ti­ga­tion. How­ev­er, no inves­ti­ga­tion was opened, and his con­clu­sions were cov­ered up until today.

The mur­der com­plaint filed by Mrs Mag­nit­skaya also high­lights the cir­cum­stances of Sergei Magnitsky’s murder:

“For a peri­od of one and a half to two hours, Mag­nit­sky – who was in acute and excru­ci­at­ing pain – instead of being giv­en med­ical atten­tion, was put in an iso­la­tion cell by eight riot troop­ers, direct­ed by the assis­tant chief of the deten­tion cen­ter togeth­er with his deputy. The emer­gency room physi­cians were giv­en access to him only after one and a half hours, and only to con­firm his death.”

The com­plaint then refers to spe­cif­ic details of the phys­i­cal injuries that Sergei Mag­nit­sky suf­fered (includ­ing injuries to his knuck­les on both hands and deep lac­er­a­tions on the lit­tle fin­ger of his left hand, injuries on his wrists from hand­cuffs and a large hole in his tongue). None of these injuries have been addressed in any of the offi­cial post-mortem exam­i­na­tions done by the Russ­ian Inves­tiga­tive Committee.

The com­plaint also cites a num­ber of text mes­sages which con­tained explic­it death threats which were sent to Sergei Magnitsky’s col­leagues at rough­ly the same time as his death.

Since Magnitsky’s death, the Russ­ian Inves­tiga­tive Com­mit­tee has failed to address any of the avail­able evi­dence of his false arrest, tor­ture and mur­der, includ­ing deten­tion cen­ter guards using hand­cuffs and rub­ber batons on Mag­nit­sky in the last two hours of his life.

“The inves­ti­ga­tion, which has con­tin­ued for more than 21 months, has still not giv­en a prop­er assess­ment of the evi­dence of direct vio­lence against Mag­nit­sky, and the inves­ti­gat­ing offi­cials con­tin­ue to refuse to estab­lish the rea­sons for his phys­i­cal injuries…Investigators rely on as “estab­lished facts” the tes­ti­monies of deten­tion cen­ter offi­cials who are inter­est­ed in con­ceal­ing their role in Magnitsky’s death,” says the petition.

Final­ly, the mur­der com­plaint describes the motives of Russ­ian offi­cials to tor­ture and ulti­mate­ly silence Sergei Mag­nit­sky. One month before Magnitsky’s death, in sworn state­ments to the Inte­ri­or Min­istry, he con­firmed the names of five Inte­ri­or Min­istry offi­cers and their role in the theft of $230 mil­lion of pub­lic funds. Three days before his death, in fur­ther court fil­ings, Mag­nit­sky pro­vid­ed addi­tion­al evi­dence of how Inte­ri­or Min­istry offi­cers fab­ri­cat­ed and fal­si­fied doc­u­ments in his case file in order to retal­i­ate against him for pro­vid­ing his pre­vi­ous testimony.

Gen­er­al Pros­e­cu­tor Chai­ka and for­mer Deputy Inte­ri­or Min­istry Anichin are named as co-con­spir­a­tors in the crim­i­nal complaint.

“Due to either gross neg­li­gence or the pur­suit of their per­son­al inter­ests, Gen­er­al Pros­e­cu­tor Chai­ka Y. Y. and the Head of the Inte­ri­or Ministry’s Inves­tiga­tive Com­mit­tee Anichin A.V. refused or left with­out ade­quate con­sid­er­a­tion my son’s and his attor­neys’ com­plaints, peti­tions and appeals, despite the fact that they were addressed to them and detailed gross vio­la­tions of his rights,” says the complaint.

“With the com­plic­i­ty of senior gov­ern­ment offi­cials, includ­ing Deputy Chief of the Inves­tiga­tive Com­mit­tee of the Min­istry of Inter­nal Affairs Logunov O.V. and Deputy Head of the Fed­er­al Pen­i­ten­tiary Ser­vice of the Russ­ian Fed­er­a­tion Semenyuk V.I. and Petrukhin E.V., my son was repeat­ed­ly trans­ferred between the deten­tion facil­i­ties with the pur­pose of exert­ing fur­ther phys­i­cal and psy­cho­log­i­cal pres­sure on him,” fur­ther says the petition.

The mur­der com­plaint also demands to inves­ti­gate the role of 11 judges in autho­riz­ing an ille­gal arrest and deten­tion of a know­ing­ly inno­cent indi­vid­ual and the denial of jus­tice and an objec­tive review of his com­plaints, lead­ing to his death.

Sergei Mag­nit­sky, act­ing as out­side coun­sel for the Her­mitage Fund, once the largest port­fo­lio investor in Rus­sia, uncov­ered a cor­rupt scheme through which Russ­ian gov­ern­ment offi­cials and crim­i­nals stole over $230 mil­lion that had been paid to the Russ­ian gov­ern­ment by the Her­mitage Fund’s com­pa­nies in tax­es. One month after Mag­nit­sky tes­ti­fied about the involve­ment of gov­ern­ment offi­cials in the cor­rupt scheme, he was arrest­ed by those same offi­cials, kept in deten­tion in tor­tur­ous con­di­tions for 358 days with­out tri­al and died on 16 Novem­ber 2009.

From deten­tion, Sergei Mag­nit­sky wrote over 450 peti­tions and com­plaints about the vio­la­tion of his rights and denial of access to jus­tice. His com­plaints were reject­ed by Russ­ian Inte­ri­or Min­istry offi­cials, pros­e­cu­tors and courts. Despite the evi­dence of crim­i­nal con­duct of offi­cials pre­sent­ed in July by the Russ­ian President’s Human Rights Coun­cil, and near­ly two years after Magnitsky’s death in cus­tody, not a sin­gle Russ­ian offi­cial has been pros­e­cut­ed and tried for his false arrest, tor­ture and murder.

Offi­cials Named In the Mur­der Complaint

The fol­low­ing offi­cials have been named in the complaint:
 — Inte­ri­or Min­istry of the Russ­ian Fed­er­a­tion: Anichin A.V., Logunov O.V., Matveev A.N., Vino­grado­va N.V., Karlov G.V., Silchenko O.F., Kuznetsov A.K., Droganov A.O., Krechetov А.А., Tolchin­sky D.M., Oleinik S.V., Sapuno­va M.О., Dmitrie­va N.I. and oth­er mem­bers of the inves­tiga­tive team and offi­cials of the Russ­ian Inte­ri­or Ministry;
 — Gen­er­al Prosecutor’s Office of the Russ­ian Fed­er­a­tion: Chai­ka Y.Y., Peche­gin A.I., Burov А.V., Altukho­va M.E., Sivozhelez V.А.;
 — Fed­er­al Secu­ri­ty Ser­vice of the Russ­ian Fed­er­a­tion: Loguntsov А.Е.; and
 — Fed­er­al Pen­i­ten­tiary Ser­vices of the Russ­ian Fed­er­a­tion: Petrukhin E.V., Semenuk V.I., Prokopenko I.P.., Kom­nov D.V., Kra­tov D.B., Tagiev F.G.”

The fol­low­ing judges have been named:
 — Judges of Tver­skoi Dis­trict Court of Moscow: Stashina E.V.; Podoprig­orov S.G.; Ukhnal­e­va S.V., Krivoruchko A.V., and Nevero­va T.V.,
 — Judges of the Moscow City Court: Vodopy­ano­va L.M., Markov S.M., Andree­va S.V., Nikolenko L.I., Shara­po­va N.V., Rol­geyz­er O.V.

 

На основании новых обстоятельств, свидетельствующих о физической расправе над Сергеем Магнитским в следственном изоляторе, его мать требует возбуждения уголовного дела против Генерального прокурора Чайки, чиновников МВД, ФСБ, ФСИН и 11 судей

September 26, 2011

Адвокат Николай Горохов направил в Следственный комитет заявление матери Сергея Магнитского о возбуждении уголовного дела в отношении Генерального прокурора Чайки, чиновников МВД, ФСБ, ФСИН и 11 судей как соучастников в организации незаконного ареста, истязаний и лишения жизни ее сына. В заявлении приводятся новые факты и документы, свидетельствующие о применении физического насилия в отношении Магнитского и его убийстве в следственном изоляторе.

«За более полутора лет, прошедших с момента гибели моего сына Магнитского С.Л. в следственном изоляторе,…мне стали известными и доступными данные, свидетельствующие о совершении преступления против моего сына, а именно о том, что его смерть наступила вследствие умышленных насильственных действий», — говорится в заявлении мамы Сергея Магнитского. Read more

Dutch Foreign Minister Plans to Call for EU-wide Sanctions Against the Killers of Sergei Magnitsky in the Absence of their Prosecution in Russia

September 22, 2011

The Dutch For­eign Min­is­ter Uri Rosen­thal has called upon Rus­sia to bring to jus­tice the killers of Sergei Mag­nit­sky, 37-year old Russ­ian lawyer for the Her­mitage Fund, once the largest for­eign port­fo­lio investor in Russia.

In a let­ter to the Dutch par­lia­ment pub­lished on 20 Sep­tem­ber 2011 enti­tled “Human Rights in For­eign Pol­i­cy. Imple­men­ta­tion of the Sergei Mag­nit­sky Res­o­lu­tion,” Min­is­ter Rosen­thal said that he intends to raise the pos­si­bil­i­ty of EU-wide sanc­tions in the absence of accept­able out­comes of the Russ­ian offi­cial investigation:

“The Gov­ern­ment has con­cerns fol­low­ing the death of Mr. Mag­nit­sky and feels encour­aged by the motion. I con­sid­er it is impor­tant at bilat­er­al and EU lev­el to main­tain pres­sure on Rus­sia so that those respon­si­ble for the death of Sergei Mag­nit­sky face lia­bil­i­ty… Depend­ing on the out­comes of the Russ­ian judi­cial inves­ti­ga­tion, I intend to raise the pos­si­bil­i­ty of fur­ther action at EU level.” 

Dutch Min­is­ter Rosen­thal has stressed that it is impor­tant to main­tain pres­sure on Rus­sia both through bilat­er­al and EU chan­nels so that those respon­si­ble for the lawyer’s death in police cus­tody are brought to jus­tice. Read more

Министр иностранных дел Нидерландов призвал предать суду всех виновных в смерти Магнитского

September 22, 2011

Министр иностранных дел Нидерландов, профессор Ури Розенталь направил в голландский парламент отчет об исполнении принятой законодателями в июле этого года резолюции о введении санкций в отношении российских чиновников по делу Магнитского. Министр Розенталь подчеркнул, что он приложит все усилия для оказания влияния на российские органы власти как по линии двустороннего сотрудничества, так и в рамках Евросоюза, для наказания виновных в гибели 37-летнего юриста фонда Her­mitage Сергея Магнитского. Он также сообщил, что в случае отсутствия приемлемых результатов российского расследования гибели Магнитского, он будет поднимать вопрос о принятии мер в отношении российских чиновников по делу Магнитского на уровне Евросоюза.

«Правительство [Нидерландов] озабочено событиями, связанными с гибелью Магнитского, и поддерживает резолюцию парламента по данному делу. Российские следственные органы обязаны провести расследование в отношении лиц, причастных к его смерти, установить и привлечь виновных к уголовной ответственности и предать их суду», — подчеркивается в отчете Министра иностранных дел.

Напомним, в июле этого года Парламент Нидерландов единогласно (150 – за, 0 – против) принял резолюцию о присоединении к инициативам Европарламента и Конгресса США о введении визовых и экономических санкций в отношении 60 российских чиновников, причастных к смерти Магнитского и многомиллиардным хищениям бюджетных средств России.

«Я считаю важным, чтобы и на двустороннем уровне, и в рамках взаимодействия по линии Россия-Евросоюз было оказано влияние на Россию с тем, чтобы ответственные за гибель Магнитского понесли наказание», — указывает министр Розенталь в своем отчете «Права человека во внешней политике. Исполнение резолюции по делу российского юриста Сергея Магнитского», опубликованном 20 сентября 2011 года. Read more

Sergei Magnitsky’s Mother Summoned for Questioning by the Same Russian Interior Ministry Officers Who Arrested and Tortured Her Son to Death

September 5, 2011

Mrs. Natalia Mag­nit­skaya, moth­er of Sergei Mag­nit­sky, the 37-year old anti-cor­rup­tion lawyer killed in Russ­ian police cus­tody in Novem­ber 2009, has been sum­moned for ques­tion­ing as a “wit­ness” by the same Inte­ri­or Min­istry offi­cers who arrest­ed and tor­tured her son to death. It is being con­duct­ed as part of the same crim­i­nal case against Sergei Mag­nit­sky, which was orig­i­nal­ly used to false­ly arrest him, and has now been re-opened 20 months after his death. The case has been re-opened with­out the Mag­nit­sky family’s con­sent. This lat­est action by Russ­ian law enforce­ment bod­ies is seen as an attempt to put psy­cho­log­i­cal pres­sure on the Mag­nit­sky fam­i­ly, who are seek­ing jus­tice for his death. 

“The ques­tion­ing of Sergei Magnitsky’s moth­er by the same inves­ti­ga­tors who were involved in per­se­cut­ing her son, under the same case that Mag­nit­sky was false­ly arrest­ed and even­tu­al­ly killed, is a cyn­i­cal and cru­el action designed to sup­press his family’s efforts in seek­ing jus­tice. The offi­cers who tor­tured Mag­nit­sky in cus­tody, now, almost two years after his death, are try­ing to pres­sure his rel­a­tives into with­draw­ing their pub­lic call for jus­tice,” said a Her­mitage Cap­i­tal rep­re­sen­ta­tive. Read more

Next Page »

• Link