“Absolutely legal court decision”: how the investigation into the case of the beating of a girl from St. Petersburg is progressing

The court of the Frunze district of St. Petersburg issued a decision on the detention of 24-year-old Maxim Berdnikov, accused of torturing his minor children. According to RT, in the joint press service of the city’s courts, the man was imprisoned until March 16. His cohabitant was extended the period of detention by 72 hours, during which time investigators must provide the court with additional documents substantiating the need for her detention.

The press service of the IC in St. Petersburg RT said that an investigation is underway of the crimes under subsection “a” part 3 of article 111 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (intentional infliction of grievous bodily harm to a group of people by prior conspiracy), "G, e" part 2 of article 117 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (torturing a group of people with a knowingly minor or a person who is obviously helpless for the guilty person), as well as Art. 156 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (non-fulfillment of obligations to raise a minor).

“The accused, being the father and stepmother of a girl born in 2014, being in the apartment of one of the houses on Turku Street, acting from personal hostile relationships, with particular cruelty, bullying and torment for the victim, systematically inflicted multiple blows on her body with her arms and legs,” RT reported to SK.

The department noted that the parents used as a weapon "an unidentified baseball bat." In this case, the girl was not provided with medical care, as a result, an infection entered the wound.

As a result, the actions of the spouses were assessed as inflicting a grievous appearance on health and moral suffering.

According to investigators, the father regularly beat his four-year-old son with arms, legs and a belt. In total, the family had three children, the youngest child was not yet a year old. Now everyone has been removed from the family and placed in a specialized children's institution.

“As part of the criminal investigation, investigators will thoroughly clarify all the circumstances of the incident. A large amount of investigative actions is being carried out, the reasons and conditions are being established that contributed to the commission of this crime, ”the UK reports.

The investigation of the case was taken under control by the head of the main investigative department of the IC in St. Petersburg, Alexander Klaus.

Earlier, RT spoke about a six-year-old girl from St. Petersburg who ended up at the end of last year at Children's Hospital No. 5 with multiple injuries and bruises. The baby spent more than a week in intensive care.

On December 15, 2019, doctors from the hospital handed a telephone message to the police that the injuries sustained by the girl could be criminal in nature. During the inspection, the police found out that her parents abused the girl. A criminal case was instituted against them under Article 156 of the Criminal Code (“failure to fulfill obligations to educate a minor”). Later, in the same children's hospital, the girl’s brother also entered the medical and social care department.

The girl who got to the hospital was shaved baldly, badly beaten, wore old clothes that were not her size. She quickly attracted the attention of adults in the hospital. The girl said that her parents beat her and her brother regularly, she also said that she was tied for the night, her father pulled her hair and then shaved, tried to pull out her teeth.

According to local media, Maxim Berdnikov told investigators that he did not like his daughter, but beat her because the girl looked like her mother - his ex-wife. He stated that he wanted to get rid of her, but was afraid that after his refusal, two other children from their second marriage would be taken from the family.

Learning from Katya about the situation in the family, the volunteers tried to help her - they bought new things, a toothbrush, and tried to contact the guardianship authorities, who did not really respond.

Now, as part of the investigation, it is planned to check the activities of guardianship authorities, which were supposed to monitor the upbringing of children and ensure their safety.

“The Russian Ministry of Education keeps the situation under control. Children are provided with the necessary care until the situation is resolved. The social rehabilitation center of St. Petersburg is connected to work with them, ”RT told the press service of the Ministry of Education.

According to lawyer Robert Akhmetzyanov, the arrest of parents is fully consistent with the circumstances of the incident and the norms of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

“This is an absolutely legal and justified court decision, as well as the position of the investigator in this matter,” he said.

As he explained, the key in the charge was article 111 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (intentional infliction of grievous bodily harm to a group of people by prior conspiracy), which allowed the girl’s father to be detained for the duration of the investigation.