Press Release, 26.10.2022

Photo Ruslan Zinalullin / Photo by the Yabloko Press Service

Today, the Sixth Court of Cassation of General Jurisdiction in Samara overturned the decision of the Sovetsky District Court of Kazan, which declared the search at the home of Ruslan Zinatullin, Chairman of the Tatarstan branch of Yabloko, unlawful. The Sovetsky District Court, for the third time, will consider the motion of the investigation to conduct a search seven months ago.

On 17 March, there were multiple searches at the homes of political activists in Kazan. Searches were conducted in the homes of Ruslan Zinatullin, Chairman of the Yabloko branch in Kazan, Gulnaz Ravilova, Deputy Chair of the Kazan branch of Yabloko, and Yelena Izotova, a member of the regional council of the branch. All the three Yabloko activists are witnesses in the criminal case of “incitement to riots” because of a post in Telegram.

On 5 May, the Supreme Court of Tatarstan overturned the decision of the Sovetsky District Court on conducting a search at Ruslan Zinatullin’s home and returned the case for a new trial. On 20 May, the same court in Kazan denied the search request. Then Ilnur Ibragimov, Deputy Public Prosecutor of the Republic of Tatarstan and Senior Counselor of Justice, filed a cassation appeal with the Sixth Cassation Court of General Jurisdiction against the decision of the district court to refuse to satisfy the motion of the investigation.

“The Public Prosecutor’s office stated at the trial that the rights of the investigator were violated, since he did not participate in the hearings of the Sovetsky District Court and could not provide additional evidence. I believe that this is just a formal reason, because the court considered the motion not for a new search, but for the one that had already taken place,” Ruslan Zinatullin commented on the decision.

During the search, the law enforcement officers set the door of Ruslan Zinatullin’s flat on fire and threw him to the floor and handcuffed, trotted on his back, insulted and threatened him. The lawfulness of such a search of the leader of Yabloko in Tatarstan, who is in the status of a witness, will be considered by the Sovetsky District Court of Kazan for the third time.