Mardiros Demerchyan and his wife talking to their advocate Alexander Popkov (in the centre). Photo by Svetlana Kravchenko for the ‘Caucasian Knot’.

15 November 2014, 08:59

In Sochi, at trial in Mardiros Demerchyan's case, witness describes defendant's complaints about torture

On November 14, at the trial in the case against Mardiros Demerchyan, a builder of the Olympic facilities, the court questioned Sergey Sobolev, the head of the surgical ward of the city hospital No. 3. According to the witness, the defendant was brought for his medical examination in a depressed state and with multiple injuries, and he told the doctor that he had been tortured.

"I am not a proctologist; however, while examining patient Demerchyan, I as a doctor discovered damage to his anus in the form of deep bleeding cracks. I asked Demerchyan why he got those injuries, and he replied that he had been tortured. He did not tell me the details. The patient was clearly in a depressed state, and for ethical reasons, I did not to try to ask him, where, how and who inflicted the injuries to him," the doctor has stated.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that 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 law enforcement bodies deny involvement of policemen in infliction of injuries to Mardiros Demerchyan, and investigator refused to institute criminal proceedings against staff members of the police station, where the defendant had been brought to.

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

Author: Svetlana Kravchenko Source: CK correspondent

All news
НАСТОЯЩИЙ МАТЕРИАЛ (ИНФОРМАЦИЯ) ПРОИЗВЕДЕН И РАСПРОСТРАНЕН ИНОСТРАННЫМ АГЕНТОМ ООО “МЕМО”, ЛИБО КАСАЕТСЯ ДЕЯТЕЛЬНОСТИ ИНОСТРАННОГО АГЕНТА ООО “МЕМО”.

November 22, 2024 23:55

November 22, 2024 23:29

November 22, 2024 20:23

November 22, 2024 19:54

  • Defender of Sochi gardeners' rights claims illegal prosecution

    Law enforcers have conducted a search of the home of Tatiana Polivanova, an activist, and her family members in Taganrog in connection with a fraud case with land plots of the Sochi National Park. The Polivanova's organization provided legal assistance to dozens of gardeners whose plots were seized by the court within this case.

November 21, 2024 23:59

News archive