News

On 2 June 2016, the Investigative Committee hosted a meeting of the advisor council on assistance to orphans and children left without parental care which discussed protection of children against the spread of asocial behavior characteristic of criminal subculture in social facilities.

The meeting was attended by: Vice-Chairman of the Investigative Committee Ilya Lazutov, state advisor of justice Aleksandr Sukharev, acting chancellor of the Investigative Committee Academy Anatoly Bagmet, director of the Alexander Nevsky Cadet School of the Investigative Committee Igor Zaporozhan, Chairman of the National Association of NGOs of investigation veterans The Union of Investigation Veterans Vladimir Dontsov, Honored Artist of the Russian Federation, member of the Union of Writers of Russia Aleksandr Minkov (Marshall), as well as officials of the central office of the Investigative Committee, representatives of education, guardianship, healthcare authorities and executive authorities of some of the regions.

In his speech the Vice-Chairman of the Investigative Committee mentioned the statistics of criminal cases investigated by the Investigative Committee and pointed out that in 2015 201 minors left without parental care were recognized victims. Out of that number 76 children are inmates of orphanages or children’s homes, 18 of them suffered from sex abuse (article 131 and 132 of the RF Penal Code). In the same year, 691 inmates of orphanages and children’s homes committed crimes, 32 of them committed sex crimes (articles 131 and 132 of the RF Penal Code).

Discussing the spread of asocial behavior in the system Mr. Lazutov made examples: director of Pervomaysky Children’s Home in Transbaikalian Territory Galina Tyumentseva was prosecuted for a crime under Part 1 of Article 293 of the RF Penal Code (negligence). The case was opened over sex abuse of three small inmates of the facility committed by elder inmates of the same facility. The administration of the facility though aware of the crimes did nothing to hold the guilty accountable or to restore the violated rights of the inmates.

Additionally, in the middle of February 2014, one of the offices of the Investigative Committee located in North Ossetia-Alania got a report that two underage inmates had left the facility on their own. The teenagers were found, but the investigators discovered that the inmates had divided into groups with one of the group being privileged while the other had had to submit to them and serve them. Criminal proceedings were initiated. It is notable that both victims and the accused were inmates of the state-funded special facility for deviants. The status of the facility means that the inmates have to be protected as much as possible against any kind of violence.

It was said at the meeting that the risk factors of spreading criminal subculture in educational facilities could be the influence of ex-cons; a “crisis” family, whose members brawl, have antisocial behavior, abuse alcohol which has negative influence on the children; unemployment, inability of parents to provide their children with good food or clothes and other factors.

The members of the council noted that it was necessary to improve interagency cooperation between law-enforcement bodies and social protection, guardianship, education and healthcare authorities for ensuring state support of the family, maternity and childhood and for intensifying liability for the propaganda of criminal subculture. Concrete proposals were prepared to be sent to proper state authorities.

Head of Media Relations                                                                                                                                 V.I. Markin