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2 former Tatarstan policemen sentenced to 2 years in prison

Meanwhile, the SK completed the probe against eight former officers of the "Dalny" police station in Tatarstan's capital
Photo ITAR-TASS
Photo ITAR-TASS

MOSCOW, September 25 (Itar-Tass) — Kazan's Volga court on Tuesday sentenced two former police officers from the "Dalny" department to two and 2.5 years in a penal colony, Investigative Committee spokesman Vladimir Markin told Itar-Tass.

The court said the "evidence gathered by SK bodies in Tatarstan was sufficient to pass a verdict for two former district police officers Ilshat Garifullin and Ramil Nigmatzyanov. They were accused of the commission of crime covered by Article 286, Part 1 of Russia’s penal code /"exceeding authority"/.

Initially, they pleaded guilty and their case had to be reviewed under special procedure. However, during preliminary hearings, the former policemen had renounced their acknowledgement of fraud. The case therefore was reviewed under standard procedure.

The investigators said Garifullin, who was looking for the culprit after a theft of a mobile phone at a shop had been reported, brought Sergei Nazarov, 52, to the Dalny police station together with Nigmatzyanov. The policemen then fabricated a case over petty hooliganism against Nazarov, which made groundwork for a protocol of administrative offense. Nazarov died in hospital after tortures at the police station. Several colleagues of Garifullin and Nigmatzyanov tried to beat a confession out of him, investigators said.

"If the district policemen, Garifullin and Nigmatzyanov, had not detained Sergei Nazarov illegally, the tragedy would not have occurred," the SK representative said.

"Given the public outcry after the Dalny police department incident, /SK chairman/ Alexander Bastrykin sent a group of experienced investigators to Kazan led by the senior investigator for special cases under SK chairperson.

"The Moscow investigators carried out tremendous work to gather the evidence of illegal actions by police officers.

"More than 200 witnesses were questioned in the case, and 87 expert examinations were carried out. The results made groundwork for the indictment.

"It was under the pressure of the body of these incriminating circumstances that district police officers Ilshat Garifullin and Ramil Nigmatzyanov admitted their guilt, Markin said earlier.

Meanwhile, the SK completed the probe against eight former officers of the "Dalny" police station in Tatarstan's capital.

The police department was dissolved, and all the 87 staff had to undergo an early performance review.

After the incident, the Interior Ministry launched sweeping checks across Tatarstan. Forty-three criminal cases were opened against former and incumbent police officers from the "Esperanto," "Gagarinsky," "Yapeyevo" and "Voskhod" departments, as well as against investigators from Kazan, Almetyevsk, Nizhnekamsk and Naberzhnye Chelny.

Following are the "Dalny" personnel who will go on trial: former deputy head of the criminal investigation department Almaz Vasilov, 25, criminal investigation department chief Ainur Akhmatullin, 31, criminal police chief, deputy head of the police department Fail Sabirzyanov, 26, and detectives Ramil Akhmetzyanov, 25, Ilnar Ibatullin, 24, Amir Sharafullin, 29, Alexander Fadeyev, 28, and Dmitry Vasilyev, 23.

The criminal case against the ninth defendant, former head of an office at the "Dalny" police department Ilgiz Akhmetzyanov, 45, made separate proceedings due to his illness," Markin said.

The nine police are accused of exceeding their authority. Aside from that, Akhmetzyanov, Vasilov, Ibatulin and Sabirzyanov are accused of "causing grave harm to health that resulted in the victim’s death."

None of the police confessed to the crimes.

The "Dalny" incident promoted the SK to set up units to investigate crimes committed by police. Such divisions already operate in federal districts and in Moscow and St Petersburg. In the first half of this year, the SK opened some 2,000 criminal cases against police.