Ihar Pcichkin’s mother: My son was killed by policemen

The relatives of a Minsk resident, who died in the prison in Valadarskaha Street, demand the investigation of his death.

Ihar Pcichkin was sentenced to a 3 months arrest for driving without a license. Two years ago the court forbad him to drive for 5 years. The 21-year old resident of Minsk acknowledged his guilt during the court’s proceedings. On 30 July he came to Minsk Zavadski district’s police department, from which the young man was taken to the jail in Valadarskaha street, where he was supposed to serve the sentence, Belsat TV channel reports.

In four days prison’s employees called Ihar Pcichkin’s mother and informed her of his death. They told that the heart of the young man, who never suffered from any illness, stopped. His body was sent to a morgue with the mother’s permission, and the autopsy was done. Later, during the identification procedure, relatives saw multiple bruises and wounds. Broken ribs could be noticed with a naked eye, and there were traces of handcuffs and open wounds on the wrists.

“This is what they did to him in four days, - Zhana Pcichkina says, showing multiple pictures with the traces of tortures. – I know that police killed him”.

A human rights activist Alena Krasouskaja, a doctor by education, personally examined the body. The expert has established the fact of multiple beatings. The official medical expert did not notice anything unusual, including the broken ribs and arm. Alena Krasouskaja, who used to work at a prison hospital, says that such traces on the arms, like Ihar Pcichkin had, could be left by handcuffs if the person is hanged by them.

The victim’s relatives showed a videotape that Ihar Pcichkin made with his cell phone at the police station. It shows that policemen are threatening the young man with tortures for standing up for another detained person.

The relatives keep searching for the truth and demand another expertise.