Employee of HRC "Memorial" in KBR complains of threats from policeman

On June 1, the lawyer Rustam Matsev, an employee of the Human Rights Centre (HRC) "Memorial" in the Kabardino-Balkarian Republic (KBR), sent applications to the Prosecutor General of the Russian Federation, the Public Prosecutor of the KBR and the Investigatory Committee of the Russian Federation (ICRF), in which he reported about the threats received by him from Colonel Nikolai Zavyalikov, the operative officer of the Chief Department of the Russian Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) for the North-Caucasian Federal District (NCFD).

As the lawyer Rustam Matsev asserts, on May 31, he was supposed to be present in the SIZO (pre-trial prison) at confrontation of his client Kazbulat Labazanov with the above Colonel Nikolai Zavyalikov. According to the HRC "Memorial", Kazbulat Labazanov was kidnapped by power agents on February 10 in Pyatigorsk and taken to Centre "E" in Nalchik as a suspect of possessing an explosive device.

"Zavyalikov began asking Matsev whether he is using alcohol, smoking tobacco and, finally, whether the wears trunks (according to some law enforcers, a Wahhabi can be identified by clothes, in particular, by the lack of underwear). Then Zavyalikov said that while blocking and liquidating members of illegal armed formations (IAFs) in special operations, they can also block their advocates. Zavyalikov told Matsev that they would surely meet again, and advised him to go on living, constantly looking around, saying that they – power agents – would shadow him and know what he was doing," runs the press release of the HRC "Memorial" received today by the "Caucasian Knot".

Also Zavyalikov, according to Rustam Matsev, demanded from the lawyer to force his client into an agreement with the prosecution and to plead guilty. At the end of the confrontation, Matsev made an entry in the protocol about the pressure on the suspect and threats to the advocate.