Lawyers: attack on journalists should be investigated as banditry

The actions of the attackers on a minivan with journalists on the Ingush-Chechen border should be qualified as an attempt to interfere with their activities, said the lawyers interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot". They expressed their confidence that in the process of the inquiry the initial articles will be re-qualified to graver ones.

On March 9, an attack on rights defenders and journalists was committed in the territory of Ingushetia. As a result, nine people were injured. On the same day, the Ingush office of the Joint Mobile Group (JMG) of rights defenders was attacked.

According to Evgeny Chernousov, a lawyer of the law firm "In Malaya Dmitrovka" of the Moscow Bar, the attackers' actions should be qualified as obstruction to journalistic activities (Article 144 of the Russian Criminal Code that provides for up to six years in prison).

If we can be proved that the attackers on the JMG office, caught by the video camera, had real weapons in their hands, not moulages, then, their actions fall under the article of illegal arms circulation (Article 222 of the Russian Criminal Code, the maximum penalty under which is eight years of imprisonment).

At the same time, according to the expert, local investigators are not duly qualified to understand the committed attacks. He believes that a group of employees of the Investigating Committee of the Russian Federation (ICRF) and the Ministry of Internal Affairs (MIA) should fly to the venues of the attacks.

Igor Trunov, Chairman of the Presidium of the Moscow Bar "Trunov, Aivar and Partners", fears that law enforcers will not conduct a real search for the attackers and will only create a visibility of the inquiry.

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