Blood business: leadership of the notorious Berdiansk Colony No. 77 detained
The State Bureau of Investigation (SBI) has detained the former head and the first deputy head of Berdiansk Correctional Colony No. 77. They are accused of establishing a criminal organisation, extortion, and torture. Kyiv’s Pecherskyi District Court has remanded both in custody for two months without the option of bail. Human rights defenders have been sounding the alarm over the situation in the colony since as early as 2008.
‘According to operational data, almost everyone who entered the colony became a victim of the criminals. Currently, documentary evidence of the abuse of more than 30 victims has been gathered in the criminal proceedings. The process of identifying individuals who fell victim to the members of the criminal organisation is ongoing,’ reads a statement on the SBI website.
The former head of the institution and his first deputy have been notified of suspicion under Part 1 of Article 255 (creation and leadership of a criminal organisation) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine (as worded prior to the amendments introduced by Law No. 671-IX of 4 June 2020), Part 2 of Article 127 (torture), and Part 4 of Article 189 (extortion) of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.
