Resident of Sochi, fined for discrediting army, complains about law enforcers' pressure

Vladimir Atamanchuk, a Sochi resident, who was fined twice for discrediting the Russian Army, has complained that he was taken to the Internal Affairs Directorate, where the investigator urged him to refuse from an advocate and asked if he had a boat.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that Vladimir Atamanchuk, an activist, was detained on September 7, 2022, on charges of disobedience to law enforcers. On October 21, it became known that a criminal case had been opened against Atamanchuk for discrediting the Russian Army. On December 26, Atamanchuk complained that the investigator ordered him to appear almost daily; and he had to travel a hundred kilometres. The daily visits to the investigator affected the state of health of the pensioner; he had to turn to doctors. On December 28, Atamanchuk was hospitalized after being summoned for interrogation.

On February 17, 2023, three law enforcers entered the house of the 70-year-old Vladimir Atamanchuk and took him to the police department. The man said that he was urged to write a waiver from the advocate, Sergey Kostyuk, stating that he would have a new advocate appointed by the state.

After that, according to Atamanchuk, the investigator began asking him whether he had a boat. "I reassured him saying that I was not going to run anywhere at my age and with my health condition, especially since I had committed no crime. The investigator began putting pressure on me psychologically and said that I was allegedly hiding from the investigation," Vladimir Atamanchuk has stated.