"Appointed psychological and psychiatric examination": Investigative Committee is investigating the circumstances of the death of a journalist in Nizhny Novgorod

The Investigative Committee appointed a posthumous psychological and psychiatric examination to Irina Murakhtaeva, who died in the center of Nizhny Novgorod.

This was reported on the official website of the Investigative Directorate of the Nizhny Novgorod Region. 

The department clarified that on the afternoon of October 2, a woman's body with signs of thermal burns was found in the city center.

“Investigators of the Investigative Department of the Investigative Committee of Russia for the Nizhny Novgorod Region went to the scene and organized a pre-investigation check.

It has been established that the deceased is Irina Murakhtaeva, ”the message says.

The Investigative Committee added that the reports of some media outlets that the death of a woman may be related to the searches carried out in her house the day before, "have no basis."

“She was a witness and was neither a suspect nor an accused in the framework of the investigation of the criminal case in which they were carried out,” the UK stressed.

The Ministry of Emergency Situations told RIA Novosti that they received a call to Gorky Street, 71. The building of the Nizhny Novgorod Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs is located at the specified address.

Earlier, a number of media and Telegram channels reported that a woman committed suicide in Nizhny Novgorod near the building of the Ministry of Internal Affairs.

Police officers tried to help her, but they failed to save the woman.

Later there were reports that the deceased was the editor-in-chief of the Internet edition "Koza Press" Irina Slavina (Murakhtaeva). 

As reported by the newspaper "Kommersant-Volga", relatives of Irina Slavina arrived at the scene of the incident.

Her body was taken away in the car of the ritual company.

Before her death, the woman left a message on her Facebook page: "I ask you to blame the Russian Federation for my death."

Also, the day before, Slavina published a post in which she stated that searches had taken place in her apartment. 

“Today at 6:00 am 12 people entered my apartment with a gas cutter and a crowbar: officers of the TFR, police, SOBR, attesting witnesses.

The husband opened the door.

I, being naked, was already dressing under the supervision of a lady I did not know.

A search was carried out.

The lawyer was not allowed to call.

They were looking for brochures, leaflets, accounts of Open Russia, possibly an icon with the face of Mikhail Khodorkovsky.

I have none of this.

But they took what they found - all the flash drives, my laptop, daughter's laptop, computer, phones - not only mine, but also my husband's - a bunch of notebooks on which I scribbled during press conferences.

I was left without means of production.

Everything is fine with me, ”Slavina wrote.

As the lawyer Sergei Badamshin told RIA Novosti, the search at Slavina's house took place in the framework of the case under Article 284.1 of the Criminal Code (“Participation in the activities of an organization recognized as undesirable in Russia”).

According to him, before that she had been issued administrative fines several times.

Koza Press was founded in 2015, Irina Slavina has been its founder since 2018.

Over the past two years, claims for the protection of honor, dignity and business reputation have been filed several times against the publication, on which both positive and negative decisions were made by the court.

In particular, the claim of the Volga Region Builders organization was satisfied.

The trade union of journalists and media workers demanded an investigation into the incident, stating that in the case of the deceased there may be signs of a crime under Art. 110.

Of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation ("Driving to suicide"). 

Senator, member of the Commission on Information Policy Alexander Bashkin called the death of Irina Slavina a tragedy and called for a thorough investigation of the incident.

“This is definitely a tragedy.

Any death of a person is a tragedy, and even more so, such a tragic one.

Of course, special attention should be paid to this case, since we are talking about journalism - the same attention would be paid if it was a question of a soldier or, say, a police officer who died in similar circumstances, ”he said.

According to RIA Novosti, residents of Nizhny Novgorod brought flowers and candles to the place of the journalist's death. 

Governor of the Nizhny Novgorod Region Gleb Nikitin expressed condolences to the family and friends of Irina Slavina. 

“I'm sorry about the tragedy that happened.

I express my condolences to my family and friends, ”said the head of the region.

Nikitin also said that law enforcement agencies are now investigating the circumstances of the incident.