On October, 12th, at 16.30, in Krasnodar city certain people appeared at Frunze street, 15 indoors and introduced themselves as officials of the Department for Counteraction to Economic Crimes (DCEC). The incomers began to confiscate computers which were in the room, explaining that they had allegedly received information about counterfeit software installed on the computers.

During the inspection the officials of the DCEC of the western district Dmitry Anatolevich Prihodko and Gasparjan Armen Vladimirovich in presence of Bektashev Ruzhdi Eknenderovich the representative of the law firm "Spectrum" confiscated three computers.

As Anastasia Denisova the head of “ETHnICS” organization says, the officials of the DCEC carrying out the inspection have shown a statement (that ostensibly formed the basis for inspection) with a wrong specified address. The address stated in the paper was Lenina street, 4.

Subsequently there was an attempt to detain Anastasia Denisova, the head of the organization, member of the coordination council of the Youth Human Rights Movement (YHRM), participant of the GROZA movement and activist of HRC “Memorial”. As the reason for the detainment the officials of the DCEC indicated the necessity to identify her personality. Anastasia refused to go, and explained that the inspectors did not indicate a lawful basis for detention. Witnesses affirm that the officials of the DCEC attempted to take her by her hands and take away in a grey “Opel” without license plates.

Victoria Gromova, a participant of the team for protection of Human Rights advocates of YHRM, asserts that, these actions are “illegal and, as fact, are directed at intimidation. They demonstrated total disregard of legal procedures, ignorance of laws of the Russian Federation and assurance of their own impunity”.

The officials of the DCEC demanded a copy of Anastasia’s passport only after the interference of an expert from Moscow over the phone they went away.

Comment by Dmitriy Makarov, a participant of the team for protection of Human Rights advocates of YHRM, activist of Moscow Helsinki Group: “As a matter of fact, under the pretext of inspection, search and confiscation are conducted without lawful bases. It is a new stage of pressure upon the Human Rights advocate. It seems to us, that it is connected with Anastasia’s peace-making activity on Northern and Southern Caucasus. We have bases to suppose that in the actions of the officials of the DCEC there are lots of evidence of excess and abuse of the powers of office”.

Human Rights advocates have enough proof to suppose that the fact of rigid pressure on Anastasia Denisova is obvious. The basis for such conclusion is that it is far not the first attempt to impede her professional activities.

At the end of August Anastasia together with her colleague photojournalist were detained at the border when returning from a mission in Abkhazia and were subjected to unreasonable hours-long check of their transported gadgets (the laptop, the camera).

And last week Anastasia could not get to the meeting of the OSCE which took place on September, 28th - October, 9th in Warsaw. Anastasia Denisova was invited to participate in the working group and the presentation of the Georgian-Russian Civil Dialogue, but could not take off from Krasnodar because of illegal actions of the Service of Aviation Safety of the airport.

We will keep watching what is going on, and report new information on this cause.

The phone number for additional information is:
+79155822745 – Victoria Gromova

YHRM Information service
info@yhrm.org