In Ingushetia, detainees complain of torture by the militia

Four residents of Ingushetia have stated their illegal arrest and torture at militia units. According to their statement, they were forced into confession of the crime they never committed.

On November 13, in the city of Malgobek, a company of over 50 employees of law enforcement bodies and power agents brought brothers Timur and Magomed Tsokiev, Tamerlan Tankiev, Ibragim Aushev and Timur Tsokiev's wife into the ROVD (District Militia Department) of the Malgobek District.

Later, the Tsokievs were charged of illegal bearing firearms and attempt on the life of law enforcers. Tankiev and Aushev were accused of insulting militiamen at detention; and a protocol on administrative offence was drawn up on them. According to the detainees, power agents had planted ammunition into Tsokievs' house.

Now, Magomed Tsokiev is in the traumatology ward of the Republic's Hospital, and Timur Tsokiev is kept at the temporary insulator of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) of Ingushetia. On November 19, after expiry of the detention term, Ibragim Aushev and Tamerlan Tankiev were released.

Tamerlan Tankiev told the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent that when he had gone out of his house for his morning pray, "armed people in masks attacked him, without any explanations but with insults roped them and together with the Tsokievs and Aushev threw into an UAZ van.

"Inside the van I was beaten with feet and fists; and with some blunt pieces on my head. Then, we were brought, as I could understand, to the ROVD of the Malgobek District, lifted to the third floor and placed each into a separate room. There, we were subject to most severe tortures. They put a bag made from dense material over my head; and I could breathe with difficulty. Several dozens masked guys were beating me in turn," said Tankiev.

"They demanded from us four," he has stated, "to confess of some murder of a militiaman, about which we had not ever heard, and to tell them, where we had hid a sub-machine gun." According to Tankiev, they "were continuously tortured from about 6:30 a.m. till 5:00 p.m."

He said that after the beatings, employees of the criminal investigation department for the Malgobek District and officials of the prosecutor's entered the room. According to Tamerlan Tankiev, they looked "as if strongly surprised by seeing us bleeding in the ROVD" and held an interrogation. "They asked us about our whereabouts at the moment when militiaman Tochiev was executed on November 11," he added.

According to Tankiev, after the beatings, he feels his internal organs beaten off; I have constant headaches and nausea. On November 20, the Tsokievs, Aushev and Tankiev underwent forensic-medical examination, which confirmed the presence of serious consequences after beatings and torture.

On November 19, unknown persons shelled the house of Tsokievs and burnt down the house of Tankievs. "We don't live for more than a month already in the burnt-down house. Certainly, it was not heated, and it's senseless to talk any gas leakage, it was set on fire, for sure. The house was burned down almost entirely," said Tamerlan Tankiev. He said that the militia "forgot" to return his mobile phone confiscated at detention, while the Tsokievs were deprived of 39,000 roubles, a number of golden decorations, who were taken away by power agents from their house; some 15,000 roubles were also confiscated from their office.

The suspicion of an attempt on Musa Tochiev, employee of Chechen MIA, committed in Malgobek, is treated by the Tsokievs and their advocate Bashir Tochiev as far-fetched. The relatives of the Tsokievs, Tankiev and Aushev assert that the detainees were forced to confess of murdering the militiaman, as the power agents wanted to win 3 million roubles promised by some well-known Republic's person as a reward for capturing the murderers.

President of Ingushetia Yunus-Bek Evkurov promised, at the sitting on November 14 devoted to discussing the detention of the Tsokievs, Aushev and Tankiev, their relatives that he would not admit arbitrariness of power agencies to arrested persons.

He promised also that should upon expiry of 10 days from the date of Tsokievs' detention the militia fail to present evidences of their guilt of incriminated offences, they will be immediately released.