Interior Minister asked to take control of dog mass murder case in Russia

Interior Minister Vladimir Kolokoltsev has been asked to take control of the criminal case of mass murder of dogs in various Russian cities, as well as to expand the articles of the Criminal Code under which the accused should be punished. With such a request to the Minister appealed to the first deputy chairman of the State Duma Committee on Ecology, Natural Resources and Environmental Protection Vladimir Burmatov.

"In connection with the increasing facts of mass poisoning and killing of animals in cities of the Russian Federation by a group of persons calling themselves "doghunters", as a result of whose actions kill hundreds of pets belonging to citizens, as well as threatening the life and health of citizens themselves, I ask you to take control of the investigation of the criminal case initiated against an organized group of persons acting by prior conspiracy and committing criminal offenses under Part 2 of Article 245 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation, coordinating and propagandizing their activities

According to Vladimir Burmatov himself, the State Duma began to receive mass complaints from owners of animals that have suffered.

"So far we are talking about dozens of cases of poisoning throughout the Russian Federation, but I think there are many more, up to several hundred. In the group of suspects today about 3 thousand people who not only engaged in poisonings, but also spread calls for them, recipes for poisons in social networks. Already identified 120 publicks, which posted this information, "- said the deputy, noting that the most high-profile cases of poisoning were in Moscow.

According to him, now a criminal case has been opened, but based on the fact that we are talking about an organized group of persons who acted by prior conspiracy, the punishment for them should be as severe as possible, up to 5 years in prison.

"Now the case is initiated under one article, but I believe that we can talk about three articles at once. In addition to cruelty to animals, this is also the destruction of other people's property, as dogs are the property of citizens and many of them cost hundreds of thousands of rubles, and some - tens of thousands of dollars. And the third article, under which the perpetrators can be brought, is the creation of a threat to the lives of citizens, because everything that scatter doghunters on playgrounds, children can pull in their mouths, and it may end up with the death of people, "- said the deputy.

Earlier, on November 2, the first Deputy Chairman of the State Duma (GD) Committee on Ecology Vladimir Burmatov said that doghunters who call for cruelty to animals in the Network should be prosecuted. According to him, the perpetrators not only commit crimes under Part 2 Article 245 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation ("Mass killing of animals") by planting poison in certain urban areas, but also propagandize and call for cruel treatment on the Internet. Burmatov emphasized that not only stray animals, but also domestic animals suffer as a result of the actions of doghunters.