- Maxim, although your story was covered by the media at one time, it was mostly Saratov. Let's briefly remind our readers what happened to you.
- It all happened on the night of November 6, 2016.
At about two o'clock in the morning, my friend Ira Koschakova and I drove up a secondary road to 50-letiya Oktyabrya Avenue.
The traffic light worked in emergency mode, so at first I let the driver in the white "seven" pass, and then I began to go to the main one.
At that moment, a Daewoo Kalos car flying at high speed along this street crashed into us, which was believed to be driven by Denis Zagorodnykh.
Ira died from a strong blow on the side door.
Even according to the official data of the examination, he was driving with a large excess of the permitted speed - 94 km / h.
In addition, he was very drunk and, most importantly, judging by the testimony of the driver of that very "seven", (Zagorodnykh. -
RT
)
I was driving in the oncoming lane, which did not allow me to notice him.
In addition, after the accident, a bag of drugs was found in his car.
Daewoo car after collision
© nversia.ru
- Under these circumstances, shifting the blame on you looks very strange.
- Not everything is clear from Zagorodny.
Not the fact that he was driving.
I think another person was driving the car at the time of the accident.
- Why do you think so?
- Investigators told me that there was no third passenger in Daewoo, but I myself saw how a man ran away from this car after the collision in the direction of the gas station.
I was persuaded that this could not be, that it was not true.
I even began to believe, suddenly it really just seemed to me.
But when I watched one of the programs, where they showed how Denis made excuses on the camera, that they say his mother's car, and he himself did not drive it, it seemed to me that it dawned on me.
I realized that, after all, the man who had run away, apparently, was driving.
- Any suggestions who it could be?
- I think his buddy.
Zagorodnykh himself said at a confrontation that he and his friends were sitting in a tavern before the accident, and one of them was in the role of a "sober driver", although in fact he also drank.
Zagorodnykh himself admitted in court that they drank both whiskey and beer, but still that man got behind the wheel.
After the accident, he escaped, and the responsibility fell on Denis, because it was he who was connected with the car.
- Something else indicates that Zagorodny was not behind the wheel?
- Yes.
In an accident, the rear passenger of Daewoo broke his leg, flying forward, and Denis himself, who, as I understand it, was sitting in the front passenger seat, had severe bruises and bruises on his head from hitting the windshield.
But the third person was able to calmly escape, because he was not particularly hurt.
The fact is that in this car only the driver had an airbag, and it was activated.
If Zagorodnykh was driving, he would not have hit the glass like that.
In fact, after leaving the colony, I really wanted to meet with him.
The result of the medical examination of Denis Zagorodnykh.
The legal error of the breathalyzer is 0.16 mg / l
© chpSaratov / YouTube
- For what?
- Ask him to tell you honestly how it happened.
You can't change anything anyway.
But they explained to me that this is a bad idea and it is better not to approach him - you never know what will happen to him, and all sins will fall on me.
- In your case, judging by the media, there were five auto-technical examinations at once. You rarely see this.
- The very first was done by our investigation department.
And she was rather neutral.
And it indicated that if Zagorodnykh moved at a permitted speed, he could have avoided a collision.
But even her investigators did not interpret in my favor.
As the saying goes, dealing with commas can dramatically change the meaning of any answer.
Then there were more examinations in Penza, Volgograd, one was done by Irina's father, another examination we did in Moscow - everything was in our favor.
But despite the fact that the experts were on our side and confirmed the departure of the Zagorodnykh to the “oncoming lane”, the investigation presented everything from its own angle.
- Was the question with the oncoming lane key?
- Yes.
The investigator told me that my words were a lie, the testimony of my witnesses had been bought, and offered to take Zagorodnykh's words, who wrote that he was driving along his own lane.
- How was the trial?
- We can say that
there were two
(processes -
RT
).
First, the judge sent my case for further investigation.
The fact is that the police officers summoned to the court, unexpectedly for the prosecution, gave evidence in my favor.
The judge had questions as to why one thing is written in the case, but the employees say another.
For example, one of them stated that he did not write or sign the explanatory document that he allegedly wrote in the case, that even his handwriting was not there.
- Didn't it happen before the second trial?
- They no longer had such inconsistencies, everyone said what was needed.
Those police officers were no longer summoned to court, because before that they were interrogated by the investigator again, and this time there were no contradictions.
- After the accident, drugs were found in the Zagorodny ones, the seizure of the package from him immediately after the accident even got on the video, but as a result of this whole story, he got off only with the deprivation of his license for drunk driving. Why was he not prosecuted even for drugs?
- Yes, they found "grass" on him, but supposedly there was not enough weight to bring him to criminal responsibility.
And the people in the zone who are serving a sentence for the same "gram", they told me later that he definitely had to sit down for this.
Some of them were attracted even for less weight.
This is some kind of fantasy.
A package of drugs seized from the Zagorodnyi during an inspection after the accident
© chpSaratov / YouTube
- As I understand it, immediately after the accident, no one had any special questions about the culprit. The survey footage from the accident site, when Zagorodnykh hardly realizes what is happening at the medical examination, is very eloquent. At what point did everything change?
- Of course, I was shocked when everything turned against me.
Imagine, you return home after several weeks in the hospital, before that you are convinced that everything is fine, we will put him in jail, and then at one moment everything rises upside down, and this whole farce begins.
There were many violations, but the court did not even react to the obvious facts.
- For example?
- Already during the repeated trial, Zagorodnykh at the meeting directly told the judge that he was still moving in the oncoming lane.
Well, he said a lot of other interesting things, but the judge pretended not to hear it.
- You were given three years in a penal colony. If you look at the Russian judicial statistics, it shows that in the overwhelming majority of cases, for fatal accidents with one dead, committed while sober, the Russian courts, if sentenced to imprisonment, are in practice given no more than two years. The sanction of this article provides for up to five years, but even three years is an extremely rare phenomenon. Given the very controversial circumstances in your case, why were you given so much?
- I think because I did not agree with the accusation, I refused to admit guilt.
They already wanted to emphasize for such a period that I am a liar and still to blame for an accident.
Although even the victims, Ira's parents, unanimously declared at the trial that I was not guilty and asked to let me go.
I think that says a lot.
- They were originally on your side?
- No.
At first, the investigator told them that I was to blame for the accident, and the attitude towards me was very hostile.
Ira's father, now deceased, called me, said that I had killed his daughter, they say, they told him everything and explained, even threatened me.
But then, when we finally arrived at this intersection, I showed everything as it was, cited as an example the recording from the camera that my friends were able to get.
And they (the parents of the deceased. -
RT
) accepted my truth.
Uncle Igor, Ira's father, began to investigate the accident himself and also found evidence of my innocence, so Ira's parents spoke out a lot in my support at the trial.
- You were sentenced to three years, but you left earlier?
- Yes, I served half the term, a year and a half, and was released on parole.
I could have come out earlier, with such an article they are released after 1/3 of the term, that is, in my case in a year, but because of the coronavirus I had to sit longer.
- What do you have in mind?
- The consideration of my case was constantly postponed because of him.
But there was also a moment connected with the administration of the colony.
For their part, they also pulled - I worked there in the canteen, fed people, and they were interested in keeping me longer.
- How does life work in a settlement colony? Is it easy in general for such cases to go on parole?
- Everything, as in the wild, rests on money.
If they are, then you can do nothing, not work, and you will free yourself.
And if there is no money, then it is necessary to plow to the fullest so that the administration of the colony has no complaints and has a good description.
If you have money, you will feel very good, at home.
But in general, you need to behave within the framework, not to misbehave - if you try to bring alcohol, drugs, then this is naturally all suppressed, and because of one fool everyone begins to suffer.
- What kind of people end up in colonies for road accidents? Who did you meet there?
- There are actually very different people, I would not single out any type.
There were people both simple and with two higher educations.
This is such a fatal step in fate when you cannot do anything.
Well, here's a typical situation: a person was calmly returning home, a car flying with an excess jumped out head-on, and after the collision they were carried out into the lane of this intruder.
And the one who is not to blame, whom they crashed into, eventually sat down.
There were other stories as well.
A man from Krasnodar, drank in company, and his friends went for a drive in his car while he slept in the back seat.
There was an accident, two friends of the car owner died, and he was jailed.
Maxim Mitenkov
© lizagubernii.ru
- According to your personal feeling, how many convicts for road accidents were sent to the colony really fairly?
- Most of them are sitting on the case.
It must be understood that any person, finding himself in a situation like the same Zagorodnykh, will justify himself and prove that he is not guilty of anything.
One said that he knocked down his grandmother to death, she supposedly came out unexpectedly from behind the bus, and he did not have time to do anything.
But he knocked her down at a speed of 90 km / h and at a pedestrian crossing.
Everything is obvious here.
- When were you released?
- June 10, 2020.
- A few days before your release, there was a fatal accident with the participation of Mikhail Efremov, and the media were actively interested in your opinion about what awaits him in the colony. Just the other day, another terrible tragedy occurred in Moscow: student Valeria Bashkirova hit the children on a zebra crossing, as a result of which two of them died. What do you think about this accident?
- To be honest, I
really feel sorry for
her (Bashkirov. -
RT
).
To some extent, she is still a child herself.
If she was drunk, there would be no pity, but her inattention simply worked - she was distracted from the road.
There are also questions for the parents of the children, because they let them go ahead at the crossing, the road is always a place of increased danger.
In any case, the prison does not correct a person, but changes for the worse, not everyone comes out of there as people.
I hope that the parents of the deceased still will not demand
the harshest punishment
for her (Bashkirova -
RT
), because, having themselves experienced such grief, they will still deprive their daughter and other people.
I really hope that her case will not turn into another show trial with a demonstratively harsh verdict.
- Are you driving now?
- No, according to a court verdict, I have a restriction on the right to drive, but I have now begun to collect documents in order to get my license back earlier.
I really want to drive, and I really need a car.
Take the same mother Ira, who was left without a husband.
It needs to be taken to the cemetery, and it is very far away, go through the whole city and still a little out of town there.
- Did the prison give you anything useful, or can the time there be considered completely lost?
- Of course, this is absolutely wasted time.
This whole thing lasted a very long time.
During these one and a half years, my parents have grown old, my brothers have grown, and some of my relatives have disappeared.
I regret not being as tough on myself as I should have been.
While the investigation was still going on, there was a chance to change something.
- How is your life going now, what do you do?
- I returned to my former place of work, I work as a cook in one of the cafes in Saratov.
Not to say that I have withdrawn or become somewhat quiet, but there is a very great desire not to interfere with the authorities in any way and to avoid any contacts with them.
I am still under supervision due to parole, and even the usual fine for not wearing a mask can have big consequences, up to sending me back to the colony.
Therefore, I just want our state to lag behind me, I do not trust the security forces.
- You are 27 years old. What are your future plans for life in general?
- Before the accident, I was purposeful wherever I wanted to go.
But at the moment my dreams, unfortunately, are seriously limited, and I still cannot change this situation in any way.
Denis Zagorodnykh is being examined after an accident
© chpSaratov / YouTube
- What do you have in mind?
- I need to regularly go to the UFSIN to register, carry a certificate that must be signed by the employer, and not everyone will agree to this.
After all, there are people who do not conduct their business very transparently, and not every employer will agree to attract too much attention by providing work to a person with such a status.
- But parole will end sooner or later.
- While I calmed down about dreams.
At the moment, I just want there to be no encumbrances, there was no need to go somewhere to register, to return me my license, which I did not buy, like many, but received it myself, at night the bison rules and unlearning to ride.
Therefore, I want everything to return to its former course, well, and then fate will lead somewhere.
- As far as I know, you studied at the institute before the accident. Did you have any thoughts to return there?
- I wanted to return, but I would have to go to the second year again, besides, I had to pay for everything again, and I am not ready for such expenses, especially since I still have a mortgage.
- I heard that because of the misfortune that happened to you, your brother also suffered indirectly.
- Yes, after the army he was going to go to serve in the FSB, went through all the tests, training, and his curator was already waiting for the outcome of my case.
If they had lagged behind me then, he would have gone there, but because of my criminal record he was not taken there.
- I beg your pardon for such a question, but after all that you have experienced, nothing bothers you from the moral point of view? Do not reproach yourself somehow internally for that accident, although you do not consider yourself to be guilty of it?
- Naturally, I thought a lot about this, worried that Ira's parents were left without a child.
I also blamed myself in the sense that why did I agree to that trip at all, and why I suffered less in the accident, I wanted to put myself in this place, and not her.
Such torments still remain in my soul, and it will not go anywhere.
Location of the incident.
The main blow fell in the area of the front passenger seat of the VAZ-2111, which was Irina Koschakova
© nversia.ru
I think now this is my cross, and these feelings will haunt me all my life.
I would very much like to change everything, to do everything differently, but, unfortunately, this is impossible.
- A year ago, after you were released, you said that you might try to fight further and try to get the sentence canceled. How are things going with this?
- We reached the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation, where we were denied a review of the case. There were thoughts to submit to the ECHR, but in the end they decided to leave this case. And so we already came across fraudulent lawyers, we didn't want all these ordeals again, waste of money, nerves, time. People in our country are probably more accustomed to making money from misfortune. There are few conscientious people in everything related to lawyers and security officials, although they, of course, are there.