In Sochi, lady-journalist who made Nemtsov's pre-election video clip was attacked

The journalist who made a television clip for Boris Nemtsov, a candidate for Sochi Mayor, was attacked. The "Caucasian Knot" correspondent was told about it by Olga Shorina, press secretary of the Movement named "Solidarity".

Anastasia Akopyan, former employee of the VGTRK Sochi TV Channel, who was attacked, said that she does not know the culprits. Two men in civil clothes came up to her and started a conversation. By the way they spoke she thought at first that they were militiamen, although they showed no documents.

"They began asking why she was working for improper persons. They promised to show 'proper' persons to her, and suddenly lodged a blow on her face," said Ms Shorina.

She has added that they are drafting a statement to the militia on the fact of the incident with Anastasia Akopyan.

"At our meetings with voters there were pretty many provocations. We know and we see same people appearing here and there," said Olga Shorina.

Earlier, attacks of unidentified persons were committed not only on Boris Nemtsov's supporters, but also on him personally. We remind you that on March 23, before the press conference, where oppositionist Nemtsov presented his open letter to President of Russia Dmitri Medvedev with a proposal on decentralization of Winter Olympiad-2014, at the entrance to his pre-election office, unidentified persons poured some unknown liquid over Nemtsov.

According to Dmitri Berkut, a former employee of a special subdivision of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA), sometimes law enforcers organize this sort of provocations. "I know that, for example, before rallies and to intimidate and neutralize unwanted activists and journalists, 'accurate attacks' are assigned to militiamen," Mr Berkut said to the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent.

"Not so long ago, young oppositionists and a journalist were attacked by three men of strong constitution. They came up in the street and tried to provoke a fight. They used obscenities, tried "to pick up" their feelings and offended their parents. When they saw no result, they just started beating them. It all happened some 20 meters off the building of local FSB. And when one of the victims stepped aside the FSB, they immediately let him alone," said the source.

Having beaten the guys, the attackers disappeared. "Later, when the editorial board tried, through its channels, to establish those who had beaten their journalist, they found out that the attackers were from local RUBOP (Regional Division for Fighting Organized Crime) who shadowed the victims for the whole day," Dmitri Berkut continued.

According to his story, militia did nothing. The patrol unit, which arrived after a call, even refused to take the victims to the trauma centre or militia station. The application was rejected, and the journalist's edition refused to publish an article describing the incident.

"As if to this new case - a young woman was beaten. She was beaten in her face. The aim was to scale up fear, besides, because of cosmetic damage the girl is out of her work for some time. She wouldn't like to appear before the camera now," Mr Berkut explained.