“The witness of the death of Gennady Shutov was accused of attempted murder.”
The investigation into the case of Alyaksandr Kardziukou has already been completed. His case may begin in the coming months.
- Gennady Shutov from Brest died during the protests after the presidential election.
- He was shot in the back of the head near house № 334 on Maskousky Street in Brest on August 11.
- Gennady Shutov spent several days in the intensive care of the Brest hospital, then he was taken by helicopter to a military hospital in Minsk.
- Shutov died on August 19.
- The official cause of death was brain swelling from trauma, gunshot wounds from an unregistered gun.
A criminal case has been opened against the murdered man, not the murderers.
Even before Shutov’s death, the Investigative Committee stated according to which law enforcement officers in Brest did use firearms against a group of aggressive protesters armed with weapons.
Shutau’s name was not mentioned. In late September, Mediazone published video footage taken by surveillance cameras near house 334 on Maskousky Street reportedly at the time of Shutau’s murder. From the published videos it is difficult to unambiguously determine the causes of the conflict and who exactly was involved in it on the part of the law enforcement officers.
Gennady Shutov’s relatives insist that he was not a participant in the protests and could not attack the policemen with any weapons in his hands.
No criminal case has been opened on the murder of Gennady Shutov. The Investigative Committee reported the case against Shutau himself under the article of resistance to law enforcement officers. It is still not closed, despite Shutov’s death.
His relatives are under a non-disclosure agreement and cannot comment on the details.
A new charge for witness Kardziukou.
Alyaksandr Kardziukou, a friend of Gennady Shutov, was involved in the case. He also witnessed the events of the late evening of August 11.
After a conflict with unidentified individuals, which ended in a gunshot wound to the back of the head for Shutau, Kardziukou managed to escape. He was detained only on August 14.
During this time, Alyaksandr Kardziukou managed to tell his neighbor in the garages that he was able to hide from the security forces under the balcony of one of the houses. He also told him about the fact that he did not know about the fatal wound of Gennady Shutov, he believed that Gennady was detained.
After the detention, Alyaksandr Kardziukou was quickly transferred to the pre-trial detention center №1 on Volodarsky Street in Minsk. He was also charged under Part 2 of Article 363 of the Criminal Code (“Resistance to a police officer or another person guarding civil order”). The article prescribes a term of up to 5 years’ imprisonment.
As RADIO FREEDOM became aware, Alyaksandr is now accused of attempted murder (part 2 of Article 139 of the Criminal Code). The investigation is officially over, the parties are getting acquainted with the case materials. Alyaksandr Kardziukou could face up to 25 years in prison or life imprisonment if convicted in court.
“My brother’s detention has been extended once again,” Alyaksandr Kardziukou’s sister Marina told RADIO FREEDOM. “This time until January 15, it seems. Now the lawyers are getting acquainted with the materials, the investigation is over. Lawyers filed new petitions. They will still consider them. When there will be a trial and where, we do not know. I would like it to take place in Brest, of course. We really hope so. “
According to Marina, not all her letters reached her brother during this time. Letters from Alyaksandr also come with problems, some of which he rewrote three times, but the censors still did not pass them on. However, a few days ago she was allowed to meet with Alyaksandr in the pre-trial detention center.
“In four months we were allowed one meeting with my brother,” says Marina. “On December 24, my brother’s wife and I were with him. We talked to Sasha [Alyaksandr Kardziukou] in “Valadarka”. He did not complain. Of course, he was shocked to hear the chargers. But then he got himself together. He’s worried, of course. Now he has Article 139, Part 2 [“Murder” — RF]. Attempted murder is considered under the same article as murder. It was not explained why the article of the charges was changed. We were just confronted with this fact. Sasha [Alyaksandr Kardziukou] also got acquainted with the case materials, but he does not know why it happened. The lawyer has filed a petition to close the case for lack of evidence. Sasha [Alyaksandr Kardziukou] does not come into contact with investigators, does not talk to them.”
Marina believes the case could have been reclassified to fully acquit the shooters. The woman also admits that the case of her brother Alyaksandr Kardziukou can be considered in a closed court.
