Investigators Open 4th Case Against Razvozzhayev

The St. Petersburg Times

Published: January 18, 2013 (Issue # 1742)

MOSCOW – The Investigative Committee has opened a fourth criminal case against opposition activist Leonid Razvozzhayev for knowingly providing false information to police,  a statement on the committee's website said Friday.

The latest charge comes as the Investigative Committee wraps up its investigation into Razvozzhayev's claim that he was tortured by investigators from Oct. 19-21 while being questioned over an alleged plot to destabilize Russia with mass riots.

The official spokesman for the Investigative Committee, Vladimir Markin, said: "Earlier in December at the Basmanny Court, and later in January, while located in Angarsk, Razvozzhayev said that he was submitted to torture by investigators."

By doing that, Markin said, Razvozzhayev was knowingly spreading false information.

Despite being warned by investigators to stop, he continued to do so, making the allegation again on Jan. 14 in the presence of his lawyer while at a detention facility in Angarsk, Markin said.

An investigator at that center reportedly filed a complaint against Razvozzhayev, leading to the latest charge.

The new charge brings Razvozzhayev's tally of criminal charges up to four, and it carries a maximum punishment of three years in prison. He also faces up to two years in prison for illegally crossing the Russia-Ukraine border, 15 years for robbery for reportedly stealing fur hats from a Siberian fur trader and 10 years for plotting mass riots.