Itar-Tass overnight news cycle for November 18 - 1.

.Murder of 12 people in Kushchevskaya solved - governor.

KRASNODAR, November 18 (Itar-Tass) - Krasnodar Territory governor
Alexander Tkachyov said that the brutal murder of 12 people in the village
of Kushchevskaya has been solved.
"Not only the perpetrators of the massacre, but also its mastermind
have been detained," Tkachyov said at a meeting of the regional Security
Council on Wednesday.
He thanked all those who had taken part in the operation to expose the
criminals. "As practice shows, it takes years to resolve such crimes, but
our law-enforcement bodies, including regional police, have exposed
bandits within days," the governor underlined.
"It is now necessary to ascertain all the details, and expose each
participant in the massacre of civilians. So that none of the thugs goes
unpunished," Tkachyov said.
Head of the interior department for the Krasnodar territory Lt-Gen
Sergei Kucheruk said five of the six criminals had been placed under
arrest. The court was due to announce its ruling on the measure of
restraint for the sixth suspect later on Wednesday.
Tkachyov said top district police officials have been relieved of
their duties. "I express my mistrust in the whole leadership of the
Kushchevsky district's interior department. I believe that district police
chief Viktor Burnosov, his fist deputy and the chief investigator should
be fired at once," the governor said.
The public safety police chief and regional criminal police officials
will be disciplined.
"They all have made serious errors, by letting the criminal situation
in the Kushchevsky district out of control," Tkachyov underlined.
Deputy head of the Kushchevsky district administration for work with
law-enforcement bodies and human resources Nikolai Nalivaiko was relieved
of his duties as well.
In Tkachyov's opinion, the leadership of other law-enforcement bodies
working in the district is also responsible for the situation. "These are
prosecutors, the Federal Security Service, the Investigation Committee and
drug police," he said suggesting that they take a critical look at their
performance.
"It is shocking that after this brutal murder, some law-enforcement
bodies continued "their games;" they did not contribute to the
stabilization of the situation.
He cited the example, when some police had tried to sell reporters the
information on the progress in the investigation into the massacre. "And
district police officials have shown their complete unprofessionalism in
control overt the situation," Tkachyov went on to say.
The tragedy has been ripening for a long time; a number of serious
crimes have remained unsolved, such as murders, rapes, and racketeering.
In 2002, district head Boris Moskvich was shot and killed in the yard of
the Kushchevskaya administration building.
"Impunity is the root of the cruelty which shocked Kuban; it's the
primary cause of the Kushchevskaya tragedy," the governor underlined.
The Prosecutor General's Office told Tass that regional prosecutors
have arranged for interviews with Kushchevskaya residents. Regional
prosecutors are looking into the adequacy of police actions in the
district, the PGO said.
Sergei Tsapok, who reportedly masterminded the murder, has been placed
in custody for the whole period of preliminary investigation, in
accordance with the decision by the Yessenuki court on Thursday.
Preliminary investigation lasts two months.
"If necessary, custody might be extended," a court official said.
Spokesman for the Investigation Committee (SK) Vladimir Markin said
"Sergei Tsapok is suspected of masterminding a brutal murder, in addition,
SK investigators have taken into account the information that he is leader
of the gang which has operated in the Kushchevsky district for many years.
In the morning of November 5, the bodies of 12 people, including four
children, were found in a two-storey cottage in Kushchevskaya. Reports
said one child had died of carbon monoxide poisoning, and that another one
had been strangled. The other ten persons died of multiple stab wounds.
The murderers tried to set the house on fire before escaping.
Chairman of the Investigations Committee (SK) Alexander Bastrykin
will meet next Monday with Kushchevskaya residents, according to Markin.
"Alexander Bastrykin intends to use the information supplied by the
settlement's residents with the view of objectively evaluating law and
order in the district, and ascertaining the causes and the conditions that
led to the tragedy," the SK spokesman said.
Shortly after the Kushchevskaya tragedy, Bastrykin visited the
settlement, where he chaired a conference with the group of the
investigators probing into the murder. Bastrykin was stunned by the
cruelty of the crime and demanded that the investigators do their best to
soonest solve the crime.
The SK chief urged all the citizens, who have information pertaining
to the case, to help the investigators. For their part, the investigators
urged the residents to contact directly the SK, if they do not trust local
police. The SK guaranteed full confidentiality of information.
Earlier, Markin said "the investigators have already identified the
main leads," but he declined to elaborate, citing "the interests of the
investigation."
-0-myz


Delete & Prev | Delete & Next