Beaten even for smiling: two employees of a Russian colony were informed of suspicion

In Russia, two prison guards in the Tula region were reported on suspicion of torturing Ukrainians. According to Ukrainian investigators, prison guards beat civilian prisoners with fists, kicks, batons, and electric shockers.

The Main Investigation Department of the National Police reported this on September 16. Analysts from the Main Intelligence Department of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine helped identify the suspects, the “Book of Executioners” project reports.

These are 38-year-old Oleksiy Kochetov and 26-year-old Yevgeny Myasnikov. In 2022, they worked as junior inspectors of the strict regime correctional colony No. 1 in the city of Donsky, Tula region. The colony held Ukrainian prisoners of war and civilians.

According to the investigation, Kochetov, Myasnikov and other colony employees, together with special forces, systematically used physical and psychological violence against Ukrainians. Among the victims are at least four men who were detained in March 2022 in the Kyiv region.

The torture, according to law enforcement officials, began immediately upon arrival at the colony. During the so-called “reception,” prisoners were forced to pass through a line of prison guards who beat them with fists, kicks, rubber batons, polymer pipes, and electric shockers.

According to the case file, Kochetov forced one of the victims to stand in a prone position, beat him in the face and torso, and kicked him on the back. According to the investigation, Myasnikov forced another man to hang from a metal grate, then beat him with his fists and used a stun gun.

Prisoners were also punished for the slightest provocation. In particular, Myasnikov beat one man with a baton and a taser after he noticed him smiling on a surveillance camera. Another was beaten for being slow to dress after a shower.

Kochetova and Myasnikov are charged with cruel treatment of civilians under Part 1 of Article 438 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine. The National Police is investigating criminal proceedings regarding crimes in Russian places of illegal detention of Ukrainians.

As previously reported, the National Police of Ukraine reported suspicions of a Russian military man who ordered the killing of a civilian during the occupation of Bucha in 2022. The suspect was identified with the assistance of analysts from the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense of Ukraine.

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