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Vologda region investigating bodies of the Russia’s Investigative Committee have completed investigating of a criminal case over hijacking of an aircraft and escape from prison.

33-year-old Alexey Shestakov is charged with organizing a crime – hijacking of an aircraft (paragraphs “a”, “c” and “d” of part 2 of article 211) and of escape from a place of confinement (part 3 of article 313), stealing of a transport means (part 1 of article 166), threat to use violence against a representative of the authority and attempted auto theft (part 1 of article 318 and part 3 of article 30, part 4 of article 166 of the RF Criminal Code). Tatyana Vazhalina, 35 and Alexander Ushakov, 36 are charged with hijacking of an aircraft (paragraphs “a”, “c” and “d” of part 2 of article 211) and with complicity in escape from a place of confinement (part 3 of article 313 of the RF Criminal Code). Rusakov is also charged with illegal acquisition, storage, transportation without the purpose of selling of psychotropic drug on an especially large scale (almost 1.5 grams of amphetamine), which, investigators believe, he had obtained in Saint-Petersburg and had transported it on himself until he was detained (part 2 of article 228 of the RF Criminal Code).

According to investigators, on 22 March 2012, in the early morning a helicopter of Vologda airlines ordered by the accused Shestakov through a third party, arrived to transport of people to recreation center Irma of Sheksninsky district, Vologda Region where it took aboard 2 people. In the air the passengers – Tatyana Vazhalina and Alexander Rusakov – threatening to use objects as weapons, forced a pilot to fly to the village of Sheksna. On arriving at the village the armed people forced the pilot to descend the helicopter over the territory of correctional facility № 17 of the Vologda Region Directorate of Federal Penitentiary Service. The convict Alexey Shestakov, who was serving his sentence, grabbed a rope thrown down to him from the helicopter and got in. The helicopter then flew to Vologda, where it landed near Okruzhnoye highway and the passengers left it and fled the scene.

On 22 March 2012, local police forces stopped a car approaching the town of Gryazovets. The car was driven by Alexey Shestakov who earlier had escaped from the correctional facility. The convict threatened the police to blow them up with fake grenades and pointed at them a pistol which was like a real one. After that, wishing to flee from the police officers, Shestakov sat to a driver seat of a car he did not owned and drove in the direction of the city. After several dozens of meters he abandoned the car, being armed with an airgun, tried to seize UAZ Patriot automobile where a driver and his son were at the moment. He aimed the gun at them and started to open the door of the car, but failed as was detained by the police.

Investigators have collected enough evidence and the case with the approved indictment against Shestakov, Rusakov and Vazhalina will be sent to court to be tried on the merits.