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OC Media
07-08-2025
- Politics
- OC Media
Chechnya sentences mother of opposition figures to additional 4 years in prison
Sign in or or Become a member to unlock the audio version of this article The Caucasus is changing — and not for the better. With authoritarianism on the rise across the region, the threat to independent journalism is higher than ever. Join our community and help push back against the hardliners. Become a member The Shali City Court of Chechnya has sentenced Zarema Musaeva, the mother of opposition activists Baisangur, Ibragim, and Abubakar Yangulbaev, to almost four years for allegedly attacking a penitentiary officer. The court sentenced Musaeva on charges of 'disrupting the operation of a correctional facility' on Wednesday. According to the prosecution, Musaeva allegedly attacked an officer of the Federal Penitentiary Service and scratched his neck in December 2024. According to the human rights activists from the Crew Against Torture, there were no witnesses to the alleged attack. The prosecution requested that Musaeva be sentenced to four years in a penal settlement, but the court stopped short of that, sentencing her to three years and 11 months instead. It is not yet specified where Musaeva will serve her new sentence. In her final statement in court, she asked not to be sent to the same colony where the FSIN officer who accused her of assault works. She also stated that she would not appeal the verdict, as she 'does not believe in the fairness of the court'. The charges against Musaeva for attacking a penitentiary officer in December were pressed a few months before the end of five years and a half long sentence she had received for allegedly assaulting a police officer in Grozny following her arrest in 2022. Advertisement Musaeva was arrested in Nizhny Novgorod January of that year during a police raid of her family home in the city. The police reportedly intended to arrest her husband, Saidi Yangulbaev, who is a retired Chechen Supreme Court judge, but were unable to due to his judicial immunity. Musaeva was abducted from her home without an official warrant as a witness in an unidentified fraud case. Immediately after being transferred to Grozny, she was sentenced to 15 days of arrest under an administrative article, and was then criminally charged with attacking a district police officer who was drawing up a report against her. Musaeva was convicted in July 2023, with the sentence being commuted by six months. She was twice denied parole. Later, she was additionally charged with fraud, for allegedly failing to return parts of a fund she had received as compensation for caring for a sick person. The day after Musaeva's detention, Chechen Head Ramzan Kadyrov published a video message in which he accused the Yangulbaev family of extremism and threatened to 'destroy' them. He later repeated the threats in another video message. Senior Chechen security officials and government representatives joined in on the threats, and a rally against the Yangulbaev family was held in central Grozny, in which their portraits were burned, trampled on, and torn apart. Human rights organisations view the events as continued pressure on the Yangulbaev family and as politically motivated persecution. According to lawyers, in none of the cases against Musaeva did the court accept any evidence from the defence. Abubakar Yangulbaev has also told OC Media that his mother was innocent and that Kadyrov's regime was using her as an example to frighten dissidents. In May, the European Court of Human Rights ruled in favour of Musaeva and ordered Russia to pay her €52,000 ($55,000) in compensation for her arrest. Russia has refused to honour the court's ruling.
Daily Mirror
31-05-2025
- Health
- Daily Mirror
Doctors face prison after 'selling babies' in twisted £500K plot
Eight doctors and senior clinic officials have been detained in Russia after being accused of orchestrating a sinister scam which saw embryos arranged for birth - for the purpose of selling them abroad A chilling baby-trafficking ring has been exposed in Russia, with eight doctors and senior clinic officials detained for allegedly selling newborns to foreign buyers in a scheme worth more than half a million pounds. The scandal, centred in the Primorsky region, involves at least 13 babies being trafficked abroad - though prosecutors warn the real number could be far higher. Among those arrested are three chief physicians, accused of orchestrating a sinister operation which saw infants sold for profit under the guise of infertility treatments. According to explosive evidence presented by state prosecutors, the group raked in approximately £510,000 through the illegal trade. 'A group of doctors illegally issued medical documentation containing knowingly false information about the infertility of buyers and genetic parents,' read a damning official statement. 'Using assisted reproductive technologies under the guise of infertility treatment, the defendants carried out actions to cultivate embryos and arrange the subsequent birth of children for the purpose of their sale and movement abroad.' The IVF baby scandal centres on private clinics in Vladivostok. The country or countries where the babies were sold has not been disclosed, nor were details given about alleged surrogate mothers. The scam involved six women and two men - doctors, chief physicians, and the owner of a chain of private clinics, according to reports. In total, at least 13 children were sent abroad, flouting Russian laws. The sales happened between 2018 and 2020 but have only come to light now. It is as yet unclear if Russia will seek to repatriate the illegally sold children - now aged between around five and seven. The defendants have not been named. They face up to 15 years in jail for alleged child trafficking, according to prosecutors, with the case due to be heard by the Frunzensky District Court of Vladivostok. It comes just weeks after a Russian psychiatrist was caught running a "torture conveyor belt" at a prison hospital, where more than 20 patients died. Dr Anastasia Potorochina is now hoping to avoid jail by being sent to Vladimir Putin 's war as a medic. The 32-year-old illegally tied inmates to their beds for weeks or months, and injected them with mind-altering 'psychotropic drugs'. A total of 21 patients died on her 'torture conveyor belt' at notorious Interregional Tuberculosis Hospital No. 19, part of Putin's Federal Penitentiary Service (FSIN). Some 43 prisoners were tortured, according to the closed-doors court case where she was convicted and sentenced to five years behind bars. One orderly, Artem Pechersky, accused her of being a 'sadist'. He said: 'She liked that patients could be tied up for a long time. She would say: 'That's what they deserve', 'Let them lie there'. She made mean jokes. She believed that they deserved to be tied up'.
Daily Mirror
21-04-2025
- Health
- Daily Mirror
Prison psychiatrist 'Dr Death' avoids jail by going to war in Ukraine for Vladimir Putin
Dr Anastasia Potorochina, 32, was a psychiatrist who was jailed for her 'torture conveyor belt' at a Russian prison hospital, where people were tied up and injected with drugs A psychiatrist who ran a "torture conveyor belt" at a prison hospital where more than 20 patients died is now hoping to avoid jail by being sent to Vladimir Putin 's war as a medic. Dr Anastasia Potorochina, 32, illegally tied inmates to their beds for weeks or months, and injected them with mind-altering 'psychotropic drugs'. A total of 21 patients died on her 'torture conveyor belt' at notorious Interregional Tuberculosis Hospital No. 19 (МОТB), part of Putin's Federal Penitentiary Service (FSIN). Some 43 prisoners were tortured, according to the closed-doors court case where she was convicted and sentenced to five years behind bars. More than 60 inmates testified about torture in her jail hospital. One, Artem Pechersky, accused her of being a 'sadist'. He said: 'She liked that patients could be tied up for a long time. She would say: 'That's what they deserve', 'Let them lie there'. She made mean jokes. She believed that they deserved to be tied up'. Another- named Ilnur - said: 'She behaved disgustingly with patients, laughed at them, prescribed horse-sized doses of drugs, kept patients tied up for a long time, and they developed bedsores.' A further orderly said: 'She was rude, mean, and abused patients. She prescribed them injections several times a day, which made the patients suffer.' The youngest victim of her 'torture ward' was aged 38 and 'had no chronic illnesses', say reports. Nineteen patients died in a 10-month period under the supervision of 'Dr Death'. Pechersky said: 'All the patients who died in the psychiatric ward from supposedly 'natural causes' actually died from the administered drugs." Many were in excruciating agony. One of her patients, Roman Mikhailov, died of sepsis. Potorochina even claimed to the court that one of her victims 'may not actually be human'. She was reprimanded by the judge who told her: 'A person with any disease remains human.' Now the doctor has applied to join Putin's war, which will exempt her from punishment, quash her conviction, and allow her to keep her medical status. Her boss, deputy head of operations Alexander Lyakh - sentenced to seven years - has already gone to fight in the war. Another female psychiatrist Dr Darya Pozdnyakova, head of the psychiatric department, was jailed for six years. Meanwhile Russian attacks during the 30-hour Easter ceasefire unilaterally declared by Putin over the weekend killed three people in Ukraine 's southern Kherson region, a regional official said today. Oleksandr Prokudin, the head of Kherson's administration, wrote on Telegram that the casualties occurred over the last 24 hours, adding that three others were wounded in the region, parts of which are occupied by Russia.
Daily Mirror
21-04-2025
- Health
- Daily Mirror
Prison psychiatrist known as 'Dr Death' avoids jail by going to war in Ukraine for Vladimir Putin
Dr Anastasia Potorochina, 32, was a psychiatrist who was jailed for her 'torture conveyor belt' at a Russian prison hospital, where people were tied up and injected with drugs A psychiatrist who ran a "torture conveyor belt" at a prison hospital where more than 20 patients died is now hoping to avoid jail by being sent to Vladimir Putin 's war as a medic. Dr Anastasia Potorochina, 32, illegally tied inmates to their beds for weeks or months, and injected them with mind-altering 'psychotropic drugs'. A total of 21 patients died on her 'torture conveyor belt' at notorious Interregional Tuberculosis Hospital No. 19 (МОТB), part of Putin's Federal Penitentiary Service (FSIN). Some 43 prisoners were tortured, according to the closed-doors court case where she was convicted and sentenced to five years behind bars. More than 60 inmates testified about torture in her jail hospital. One, Artem Pechersky, accused her of being a 'sadist'. He said: 'She liked that patients could be tied up for a long time. She would say: 'That's what they deserve', 'Let them lie there'. She made mean jokes. She believed that they deserved to be tied up'. Another- named Ilnur - said: 'She behaved disgustingly with patients, laughed at them, prescribed horse-sized doses of drugs, kept patients tied up for a long time, and they developed bedsores.' A further orderly said: 'She was rude, mean, and abused patients. She prescribed them injections several times a day, which made the patients suffer.' The youngest victim of her 'torture ward' was aged 38 and 'had no chronic illnesses', say reports. Nineteen patients died in a 10-month period under the supervision of 'Dr Death'. Pechersky said: 'All the patients who died in the psychiatric ward from supposedly 'natural causes' actually died from the administered drugs." Many were in excruciating agony. One of her patients, Roman Mikhailov, died of sepsis. Potorochina even claimed to the court that one of her victims 'may not actually be human'. She was reprimanded by the judge who told her: 'A person with any disease remains human.' Now the doctor has applied to join Putin's war, which will exempt her from punishment, quash her conviction, and allow her to keep her medical status. Her boss, deputy head of operations Alexander Lyakh - sentenced to seven years - has already gone to fight in the war. Another female psychiatrist Dr Darya Pozdnyakova, head of the psychiatric department, was jailed for six years. Meanwhile Russian attacks during the 30-hour Easter ceasefire unilaterally declared by Putin over the weekend killed three people in Ukraine 's southern Kherson region, a regional official said today. Oleksandr Prokudin, the head of Kherson's administration, wrote on Telegram that the casualties occurred over the last 24 hours, adding that three others were wounded in the region, parts of which are occupied by Russia.
Yahoo
10-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Russian woman seeks to adopt abducted Ukrainian child after her son was killed fighting in war, investigation says
A Russian woman, Olga Dorokhina, took a 4-year-old girl from the occupied part of Kherson Oblast and plans to adopt her, according to an investigation by Ukrainian media outlet Suspilne published on March 10. Dorokhina's son was previously killed while fighting against Ukraine, according to the investigation. Since the start of Russia's full-scale invasion in February 2022, at least 19,500 Ukrainian children have been abducted from occupied territories and transferred to other Russian-controlled areas, Belarus, or Russia itself, according to Ukraine's national database, Children of War. Dorokhina spoke about her trip and the girl's abduction from Ukraine during a conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin at an event, claiming she had "found her daughter" in Kherson Oblast. The child is now under her guardianship. Suspilne's investigative team identified Dorokhina as a native of Yelets, Lipetsk Oblast, Russia, who moved to occupied Simferopol in Crimea in 2016. Her husband, Oleksandr Dorokhin, is a former employee of Russia's Federal Penitentiary Service and a veteran of the Chechen war. Her eldest son, Vladislav Dorokhin, served in Russia's Black Sea Fleet before joining the 810th Marine Brigade to fight in Ukraine, Suspilne reported. Ukraine has so far managed to return 1,240 abducted children, according to the Children of War database. In March 2023, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued arrest warrants for Putin and Children's Commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova over their involvement in the unlawful transfer of Ukrainian children. Human rights groups have said that Russia's mass abductions of Ukrainian civilians, including children, may constitute a war crime and a crime against humanity. Read also: Russia attempting to gain foothold in Sumy Oblast, Border Guard warns We've been working hard to bring you independent, locally-sourced news from Ukraine. Consider supporting the Kyiv Independent.
