The First Western District Military Court in St. Petersburg began to consider the case against 58-year-old former police officer Konstantin Podoshvelev, reported a correspondent from «Mediazona»* from the courtroom.
He was detained in February last year for «offensive inscriptions» about the war in Ukraine on the walls of the Polytechnic University and the Church of the Intercession of the Holy Virgin, as well as a church on Gzhatskaya Street. The court sent the accused to pre-trial detention. As «Fontanka» wrote, on the Polytechnic building, Podoshvelev wrote «University for killers», and on the churches — «ROC for killers».
Initially, he was accused of two episodes of damaging cultural heritage sites and «vandalism» on grounds of inciting political hatred and enmity.
During the session, it was revealed that Podoshvelev was also charged with «participation in the activities of a terrorist organization», as according to the investigation, he made the inscriptions on the orders of the Legion «Freedom of Russia»**.
In court, Podoshvelev did not plead guilty and demanded to call witnesses to the session who could identify the FSB and Center «E» operatives involved in searching his apartment. According to him, during the search on February 14, these operatives beat him and also threatened «torture, physical violence, harassment, and taking his family hostage» if he did not give a confession.
The accused also said that after his arrest, he was threatened by employees of the Federal Penitentiary Service and the FSB — they came to him in pre-trial detention without a lawyer, threatened «Gestapo torture» to make him confess.
The court granted the motion to call a police captain from the inquiry department to the session. The court refused to call other witnesses, such as Center «E» operative Aram Khachatryan.
In the 1990s, Podoshvelev worked as a criminal investigation operative, later engaged in entrepreneurship.
* Recognized in Russia as an «foreign agent».
** Recognized in Russia as a «terrorist organization».
Photo: Mediazona