11.03.2008 - Source: US Department of State

Corruption in police was widespread, and there were few crackdowns on illegal police activity; most common crimes committed by police officers were abuse of authority, exceeding authority, bribery, and fraud ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2007") [ID 22591]

"The national police force, which falls under the Ministry of Internal Affairs, is organized on federal, regional, and local levels. Although regulations and national laws prohibit corrupt activities, corruption was widespread, and there were few crackdowns on illegal police activity.

There have been some significant prosecutions of corrupt police officers. For example, prosecutors continue to pursue the "Werewolves in Uniform," a case involving police officers within the Ministry of Internal Affairs who used their official positions to engage in criminal activity. In 2006 the leader of the group and six other officers were convicted of charges that included extortion, bribery, and trafficking in drugs and weapons. They were sentenced to terms ranging from 15 to 20 years. Four other members of the group were still being tried.

According to the Moscow prosecutor's office, 77 police officers were prosecuted and 1,692 disciplined in Moscow during the first six months of the year. According to the internal security department of the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the number of police officers prosecuted and or disciplined increased by approximately 15 percent. The most common crimes committed by police officers were abuse of authority, exceeding authority, bribery, and fraud. Although government agencies such as the Ministry of Internal Affairs continued to educate officers about safeguarding human rights, the security forces remained largely unreformed."

Document(s): Open document

07.2006 - Source: Freedom House

Quality of Russia's police deteriorating; often young and inexperienced police officers; high rates of crimes committed by police are leading to distrust of population in executive forces ("Nations in Transit 2006") [ID 15814]

"Following the brutal police sweep of the city of Blagoveshchensk in Bashkortostan in December 2004, there were similar sweeps in Ivanovskoe and Bezhetsk, where police arrested young people at discos and cafés. Many police officers are rotated through brutal tours of duty in the North Caucasus and return to their home regions inured to the use of violence.Unfortunately, the quality of Russia's police is deteriorating. Interior Minister Rashid Nurgaliev complained on October 26 that half the police officers in city and rural police stations were under 30 years old and therefore lacked the necessary experience for police work. He said that the situation was "catastrophic," with the number of crimes committed by the police increasing every year. While officials admit to the problems, they have offered no plans to reform the system."

Document(s): Open document

08.03.2006 - Source: US Department of State

Role of the Police and Security Apparatus ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2005") [#46144],  [ID 11899]

"The MVD, the FSB, and the Office of the Prosecutor are responsible for law enforcement at all levels of government. The FSB's core responsibilities are security, counterintelligence, and counterterrorism, but it also has broader law enforcement functions, including fighting crime and corruption. The FSB operated with limited oversight by the office of the prosecutor general and the courts.
The national police force, which falls under the MVD, is organized on the federal, regional, and local levels."

Document(s): Open document

08.03.2006 - Source: US Department of State

Police corruption was widespread and with few crackdowns on illegal police activity ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2005") [#46144],  [ID 11902]

"The national police force, which falls under the MVD, is organized on the federal, regional, and local levels. Although regulations and national laws prohibit corrupt activities, corruption was widespread and with few crackdowns on illegal police activity. The government reportedly addressed only a fraction of the crimes that federal forces committed against civilians in Chechnya. Although government agencies, such as the MVD, have continued to educate officers about safeguarding human rights during law enforcement activities through training provided by foreign governments, the security forces remained largely unreformed."

Document(s): Open document

08.03.2006 - Source: US Department of State

Pattern of police beatings, arrests, and extortion directed at persons with dark skin or who appeared to be from the Caucasus, Central Asia, or Africa ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2005") [#46144],  [ID 11903]

"Reports by refugees, NGOs, and the press suggested a pattern of police beatings, arrests, and extortion directed at persons with dark skin or who appeared to be from the Caucasus, Central Asia, or Africa, and at Roma. For example in June 2004 the press reported that in Novosibirsk 4 policemen were arrested on suspicion of extorting over $1 million (28 million rubles) from a Romani family by kidnapping and torturing family members until their demands were met. The policemen were reportedly later tried and convicted."

Document(s): Open document

08.03.2006 - Source: US Department of State

In the course of a massive "crime prevention" crackdown in Blagoveshchensk, police and masked OMON troops detained over 1000 persons; police beat many of them ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2005") [#46144],  [ID 11904]

"In December 2004 in the course of a massive "crime prevention" crackdown in the town of Blagoveshchensk, Bashkortostan, police and masked OMON troops (members of a special police detachment) detained over one thousand persons; the police beat many of them. According to human rights activists who carried out an investigation of the events, at least 32 of those detained had to seek medical help afterward. Individuals were apprehended on the streets, in their homes, and in their places of business and brought to the cellar of the police headquarters building in Blagoveshchensk. Bashkortostan authorities claimed that the police actions were in response to a "crowd of rowdies" who had attacked a police patrol. On August 1, the Bashkortostan prosecutor's office filed a case against eight officials on the charge of abuse of office. Defendants included the chief of Blagoveshchensk police and the OMON unit commander. Preliminary hearings opened on September 14 and went on until November 17. The first substantial hearing took place on November 18. Defense attorneys said the court case could continue until 2008. Most of the defendants continued working in their positions. In May human rights groups said that during their investigation of these events they discovered instructions, which they linked to the federal Ministry of Internal Affairs (MVD), granting police the authority to use extreme force and set up detention centers in the event of large-scale protests. In December hecklers disrupted a meeting between human rights activists and some of the individuals beaten in Blagoveshchensk; at least one of human rights activist accused the authorities of being linked the disruption."

Document(s): Open document

31.01.2006 - Source: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

According to interior ministry, police committed more than 44,000 offenses in 2005; over 4,000 officers taken to court ("Russian Police Breaking Law More Often") [#43157],  [ID 11905]

Document(s): Open document

30.11.2005 - Source: Amnesty International

2 police officers sentenced to 4 years' imprisonment for crimes relating to torture of man in detention in 1998 ("Police officers convicted of torturing man in detention") [#40009],  [ID 11906]

Document(s): Open document

28.06.2004 - Source: Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty

According to a study police brutality is so widespread in Russia that 87 percent of medical emergency doctors have treated victims of such violence ("Study: Police Brutality Widespread In Russia") [#23619],  [ID 11909]

"A study says police brutality is so widespread in Russia that 87 percent of medical emergency doctors have treated victims of such violence.


The study was conducted by the respected research center of Yury Levada last month, polling 619 emergency room personnel in 42 Russian cities.

Levada said in Moscow that the study proves that law enforcement violence, especially by the police, is "widespread and systematic.""

Document(s): Open document

14.01.2003 - Source: Human Rights Watch

Human Rights Watch: Only few police officers prosecuted for torture ("World report 2003") [#10300],  [ID 11910]

"The government again failed to adopt a comprehensive plan to address police torture. It also blocked attempts by several lawmakers to define torture as a distinct crime in the criminal code, and to introduce a draft law allowing for unannounced inspections of detention facilities by independent monitors. A coalition of Russian nongovernmental organizations stated in a May submission to the United Nations (U.N.) Committee against Torture that they continued to receive numerous credible complaints about torture and ill-treatment at police precincts, and argued that the courts continued to rely heavily on such evidence; that the procuracy did not duly investigate allegations of torture and prosecuted few police officers for it; and that victims did not receive proper redress."

Document(s): Open document

28.06.2002 - Source:

Johnson's Russia List: Many police officers return home from Chechnya suffering psychological trauma ("28/06/2002 - Johnson's Russia List: Russia: Police Who Serve In Chechnya Bring Trauma Of War Back Home") [ID 11911]

"As Russia's 2 1/2-year war in Chechnya continues, Russian police officers are serving alongside regular army troops in the breakaway republic. The police officers' tours of duty in Chechnya are shorter than those of soldiers, and they soon return to their normal law-enforcement duties at home. But even a short tour in Chechnya can leave its mark, and observers say many police officers return home suffering psychological trauma. This, according to Russian human-rights groups, is translating into a new social blight: Police officers who contribute to the growing problem of cruelty, xenophobia, and extremism."

Document(s): 28/06/2002 - Johnson's Russia List: Russia: Police Who Serve In Chechnya Bring Trauma Of War Back Home

11.06.2002 - Source: Council of Europe - Secretary General

Council of Europe: Unwillingness of police forces from other parts of Russia to serve time in Chechnya ("Twentieth interim report by the Secretary General on the presence of the Council of Europe’s experts in the Office of the Special Representative of the President of the Russian Federation for ensuring Human Rights and Civil Rights and Freedoms in the Chechen Republic; Period from 1 May to 6 June 2002 [SG/Inf(2002) 24]") [#7556],  [ID 11912]

""The Chechen Government is working intensively towards further transfer of institutional responsibilities from the federal level to the Republic. This move is reinforced by the announcement of the Federal Forces to start closing down its local headquarters (kommandanturas). The process of withdrawing federal police and re-instituting exclusively Chechen police is rapidly progressing. This development is supported by an increasing unwillingness of police forces from other parts of the Russian Federation to serve time in Chechnya as reported in the Russian media. In addition, the posting of large numbers of police in Chechnya places a great financial burden on the Federal Ministry of the Interior.”""

Document(s): Open document
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