The Supreme Court granted the complaint of the lawyer of the human rights organization “United World (Bir Duino)” in the case of torture against a 60-year-old resident of the Uzgen region and his son, who were beaten by police officers in order to obtain confessions in the murder of a neighbor.
In October last year, a 60-year-old man and his son were detained and taken to the Uzgen district police department in connection with the death of an 85-year-old neighbor. They learned from the police officers that he had died from beatings. After several hours of interrogation, the policemen took a break. A few hours later, police officers returned in a state of intoxication.
“About one in the morning, they returned,” from the testimony of the victim. “They handcuffed him, covered it with a newspaper. The officers threatened him with sexual assault with a truncheon. All this was accompanied by foul language. At that time, they put a bag on his son’s head and beat him until he lost consciousness. They demanded that they give up their car in exchange for lightening the punishment.”
On October 14, employees of the National Center for the Prevention of Torture filed a complaint with the regional prosecutor’s office, and the lawyers of the United World (Bir Duino) filed a complaint with the Department of the State Committee for National Security on the application of torture. On this fact, the Osh regional prosecutor’s office opened a criminal case under the article “Torture” committed by a group of persons, sending the case for pre-trial proceedings to the State Committee for National Security in the city of Osh and Osh region.
However, soon the investigator issued a decision to terminate the pre-trial proceedings on the fact of torture. The complaint filed by the lawyer went through two instances, where the courts took the side of the investigator of the State Committee for National Security, considering the termination of the pre-investigation check to be lawful. At the end of June this year, the Supreme Court granted the lawyer’s complaint. The case was remanded for a new trial to the second instance court.
It is worth noting that in his complaint, the lawyer indicated that the work of the investigator was limited to interviewing four employees of the district department of internal affairs, who indicated that they did not use illegal methods against the father and son.
