The Sverdlovsk and Khanty-Mansi Regional Directorates of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation launched probes into videos from Internet showing minors' committing offences against their peers.
For instance, the Khanty-Mansi Regional Directorate of the Investigative Committee launched a probe into an offence under Article 117 of the Criminal Code of Russia (torture). According to the investigators, the incident had taken place in Khanty-Mansiysk several months ago. A complex of investigative activities is being carried out with regard to the probe. At the moment, identities of all the participants are established; they were interrogated by an investigator of the Investigative Committee of Russia. The teenagers' actions, as well as the inaction of the individuals who had been filming the incident, will be legally assessed. In addition, during the investigation, the severity of the victim's health damage will be established to specify the nature of the offence.
Moreover, a similar incident had happened in Sverdlovsk Region, where the Investigative Committee launched a probe into an offence under Part 2 of Article 163 of the Criminal Code of Russia (extortion committed with violence), following media reports on abusive practices of a group of teenage girls against their peers.
It should be noted that, during said investigations, the investigators are to examine the family environments of all the participants; the attitudes towards close relatives; to define whether said family had been socially vulnerable; whether the attackers had expressed hostility or other maladapted behaviour before; whether there had been any other alarms about the minor's physical and mental health. A special attention and a legal assessment will be given to actions (inaction) of the related services in charge of minors’ deviant behaviour prevention, including the Juvenile Affairs Commission, Juvenile Affairs Departments, heads of educational institutions, guardianship authorities. With the assessment results, a matter of criminal or other charges against functionaries will be decided upon. Also, the investigators are to present instructions to eliminate any violations found.
The investigators are to find out whether minor are sufficiently approached by teachers and psychologists in their educational institutions; whether their leisure time is arranged properly with a sufficient range of sports clubs, various classes, and opportunities to take part in youth movements.
The results of the probes and examinations lead to a conclusion that one of the essential causes of offences committed by minors is a reckless disregard for matters of education and upbringing; as well as low efficiency of and failure to achieve results by prevention measures and leisure activities improvement for minors.
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