HRC "Memorial" demands to stop criminal case against defendant in Nalchik attack case

The Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial" believes that the evidential base in the case about the militants' attack on power structures of Kabardino-Balkaria on October 13, 2005, is invalid, and demands to stop the criminal case against Kazbek Budtuev and release him from custody. This is stated in the message of the Centre, which had provided an advocate to defend Kazbek Budtuev and Rasul Kudaev.

The HRC "Memorial" asserts that the materials of the case were forged, and Kazbek Budtuev and Rasul Kudaev are innocent of the incriminated crimes. According to the Centre, Rasul Kudaev was seriously ill after his return home to Nalchik from the Guantanamo prison; he could not move without help; hence, even if he had wished a lot, he was physically unable to take part in the attack.

The HRC "Memorial" also has a number of arguments in favour of Kazbek Budtuev's innocence - the only defendant on the episode dealing with the attack on Interior Division No. 2 of the city of Nalchik.

According to the HRC, on October 13, 2005, Kazbek Budtuev was at home all the day long. When explosions and shooting burst out, he just went out into the street, which is confirmed by over a dozen of witnesses.

In the morning on October 24, 2005, militiamen came to Budtuev's home and detained him. He rendered no resistance; and the militiamen did not use force. However, the official protocol of detention was drawn up only on November 7, while the actual time and date of detention were not specified.

The HRC "Memorial" further reports that after detention Budtuev was brought to the UBOP (Department for Fighting Organized Crime) of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) of the KBR (Kabardino-Balkarian Republic), where he was tortured and forced to give evidences that operative agents needed. As a result, on that very night UBOP agents had to bring Budtuev in a critical condition to the resuscitation ward of the city clinical hospital of Nalchik, where he was diagnosed plural bruises of his stomach and thorax, and damage of his kidneys and liver. According to the conclusion of the forensic-medical examination, as a result of violence applied to Budtuev, heavy harm was caused to his health.

UBOP agents were all the time with Budtuev in hospital; they kept him handcuffed to the bed and prohibited any contact.

Meanwhile, in the course of numerous interrogations under torture Budtuev had never criminated himself or others. He just told what he really knew and what really happened. His evidences were confirmed in the course of confrontation by another defendant, Karaev, who confessed that he had slandered Budtuev under physical and psychological pressure of law enforcers.

In July 2006, Budtuev was exposed to a psycho-physiological examination, which actually meant a polygraph test. The test allegedly established that Budtuev had been involved in the events on October 13, 2005.

When the test was carried out, there was no advocate in the room, while under the norms of the criminally-procedural legislation, the polygraph results are no proof in criminal cases and can be used only as an auxiliary element in various investigatory actions. However, in this case these results were presented as "psycho-physiological examination", while there were no more proofs of Budtuev's participation in the events on October 13, 2005.