Sochi militia refuses from comments on detention of ten persons on May 14

The press service of the Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) of the city of Sochi failed to answer the questions of the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent about the fate of the 10 persons, arrested on May 14 near the venue of sitting of the IOC commission in Sochi and delivered to the ROVD of the Tsentralny District of the city.

"We have units on duty here day and night, and, probably, someone could answer your questions, but these people are not here now. Therefore - without comments," a militiaman, who did not name himself, gave this answer by the telephone of the press service of Sochi DIA.

Militiamen promised to send the cases on two detainees - press secretary of "Solidarity" Movement Olga Shorina and lawyer Alexander Glushenkov - to courts of their residence - to Moscow. These detained Muscovites missed their flight, although the militia was warned in advance that this can happen.

As to the detained Sochi residents, the trial was appointed on May 15 at 9:00 a.m. at judicial precinct No. 106 at 16 Tunnelnaya Street. However, when people came there in due time, it turned out that nobody was waiting for them. In this context, the residents who had been detained on the previous day sent an application to the City Prosecutor's Office.

Dmitri Berkut, a former employee of special MIA troops, told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent that the tactics to "remove out of one's sight and protract" was applied by militia much earlier, well before Sochi. They acted in this way, for instance, during the "disagreement marches". However, despite violations, the militia always tried to "cover the rears" by drawing up protocols, sometimes really, written with the carbon paper, or already printed out in advance with remaining spaces for detainee's data and signatures of the militiaman from the administrative group and detainee him- or herself.

But such cases were always sent to the court. Let the court fail to take measures to the detainees, the main idea is to observe the procedure and, naturally, localize people for some time within a militia station.

According to Mr Berkut, all the militiamen are taught that if he has used any special means against the detainee - tear gas, handcuffs, a rubber truncheon or detention for more than 3 hours, he should surely draw up an administrative offence protocol, in order to safeguard oneself in case of potential proceedings.

Dmitri Berkut asserts that the actions of the militia on May 14 in Sochi against picketers were illegitimate in general.