The head of the public order protection department of the Saratov police, Gennady Boltyshev, told participants of the protest against construction in the local park that he would shoot them if «necessary». Previously, he has repeatedly been featured in local media publications for persecuting the opposition.
According to the local channel «Govoritsaratov», on Wednesday, trees began to be cut down in the Saratov park to build a school named after the «heroes of the SVO» for 1,100 places. Residents gathered for a protest to prevent this. The police arrived at the scene, and Boltyshev decided to explain to the residents the consequences of not complying with his demands to disperse.
«I will be forced to use physical force», — he said. In response, a woman off-camera said: «Shoot us». «If necessary — I will shoot you all. If there are grounds for it», — Boltyshev replied.
As «Agency»* learned, Boltyshev has been working in the Saratov police since at least 2018. In media publications, the policeman is mentioned exclusively in the context of countering protests and the opposition. In 2018, he was at a city rally against Vladimir Putin's fourth inauguration, and after that, he testified in court against the protesters.
In the same year, Boltyshev threatened participants of a memorial event for victims of political repression with protocols. A year later, he organized a «human wall» during the passage of the motorcade of State Duma Speaker Vyacheslav Volodin, so that he would not see a solo picket organized to save the local children's hospital from closure, and then detained the picket participant.
* Recognized in Russia as a «foreign agent».