Sochi court rejects motion of Demerchyan's advocate against refusal to open criminal case on torture at police station

The Adler District Court has refused to consider the complaint lodged by the advocate of Mardiros Demerchyan against the refusal to initiate criminal proceedings against the policemen, who, according to the builder, exposed him to torture.

On June 12, 2013, Mardiros Demerchyan, a builder of the facilities of the Sochi 2014 Winter Olympics, was detained by the police. On the next day, he was brought to hospital from the police station of the Sochi village of Blinovo. Mardiros Demerchyan stated that the policemen beat him and his colleague and exposed him to torture. On July 26, the Investigating Committee of the Russian Federation (ICRF) opened a criminal case against Mardiros Demerchyan on suspicion of false denunciation against the employees of the police station of Blinovo. The investigator in charge refused to open a criminal case against the policemen.

Alexander Popkov, an advocate of Mardiros Demerchyan, went to court to protect the interests of his client and demanded to cancel the above refusal to open a criminal case against the policemen.

The advocate's complaint, a copy of which is at the disposal of the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent, points out that "the decision is unlawful and unjustified."

The complaint was considered on October 15. The judge refused to consider it on the merits, explaining that the trial against Mardiros Demerchyan was still in process, and that the verdict against him had not been pronounced yet. In the opinion of the judge, the consideration of the complaint could affect the verdict.

"I'll definitely challenge this decision," the advocate Alexander Popkov told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent after the court session.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.