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Magnitsky case: investigation of criminal case against prison deputy chief ends

At the meeting with ambassadors and permanent envoys on Monday Russian President...

Russia’s Investigation Committee announced it completed to investigate a criminal case against the deputy head of Moscow’s Butyrka prison, Dmitry Kratov, accused of causing death through negligence to lawyer Sergei Magnitsky. This event was timed to coincide with the adoption of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe’s resolution calling parliaments of European countries to impose visa sanctions and freeze banking accounts of senior officers from the Magnitsky list.

According to Nezavisimaya Gazeta, investigators collected enough evidence to hand over the case suggesting indictment to the court.

The Dmitry Kirsanov case was taken out from the main criminal case opened over Sergei Magnitsky’s death. The investigation should find out all circumstances that caused the lawyer’s death and help to asses actions of senior officials of the Federal Penitentiary Service and Interior Ministry. The main investigation is not over yet, as it has to study and conduct many trials and examinations.

The OSCE Parliamentary Assembly by a majority of votes adopted the resolution calling on European states’ parliaments to impose visa sanctions and freeze banking accounts of senior officials, whose names were put on the Magnitsky list, Novye Izvestiya wrote. Experts believe that this is no accidental that the completion of the investigation over the criminal case against the Butyrka prison deputy chief coincided with the resolution’s adoption. Former colleagues of Sergei Magnitsky express confidence that the investigators’ step will not stop the introduction of sanctions against those who are involved in the killing of Magnitsky.