Chairman of the Investigative Committee of Russia Alexander Bastrykin has instructed the Central Office of the Investigative Committee to supervise the criminal inquiry launched by the Zabaikalsky Regional Investigations Directorate of the Investigative Committee into the traffic accident in Sretensky District (Part 3 of Article 238 of the Criminal Code of Russia).

According to the investigation, the passenger bus fell from the bridge across the Kuenga River 60 kilometers from Sretensk at about 3 PM on December 1, 2019. The bus was following the route from Chita to Sretensk. Investigators and forensic investigators of the Zabaikalsky Regional Investigations Directorate continue working at the scene. The exact number of persons injured and killed in this traffic accident is being clarified.

Alexander Bastrykin demanded from his subordinates to investigate all circumstances of the traffic fatality, including establishing the causes and circumstances that entailed the tragedy. The Chairman of the Committee instructed to take measures for the prompt establishment of the technical condition of the vehicle, its operating conditions, and pre-departure technical servicing. The Chairman also instructed to remove materials on the traffic accident (Article 264 of the Criminal Code of Russia) from interior affairs bodies for further full and comprehensive investigation by investigative units of the Investigative Committee of Russia within criminal proceedings into the rendering of services which do not meet safety standards. Apart from that, the Chairman underlined that all investigative actions must be carried out as quickly as possible in order to prevent the guilty persons from avoiding responsibility for the death of people.

Official spokesperson for the Investigative Committee of Russia S. Petrenko