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- Shooting aside: the trial over the father of the student who committed a shooting in Bryansk has begun
Shooting aside: the trial over the father of the student who committed a shooting in Bryansk has begun
The court has begun to consider the merits of the criminal case of the father of the schoolgirl who committed a shooting in Bryansk. 53-year-old Dmitry Afanaskin is being tried for negligent possession of a firearm , with which his 14-year-old daughter shot her classmates. The tragedy occurred on December 7, 2023 - the girl came to school with a shotgun, opened fire in class, then killed herself. As a result of the shooting, one schoolgirl died. Earlier Afanaskin was charged with driving his daughter to suicide, but now this charge does not appear in the case. Why this happened and what threatens the defendant - in the material "Izvestia".
What happened in gymnasium № 5 in Bryansk
On January 15, the court in Bryansk began to consider the merits of the criminal case of Dmitry Afanaskin - the father of an eighth-grader who committed a shooting in one of the schools of the city. He is accused of negligent possession of firearms, causing the death of two or more persons.
In the morning of December 7, 2023, 14-year-old student of Bryansk gymnasium № 5 Alina came to school with a shotgun "Bekas-3" stolen from her father and opened fire on her classmates during a biology lesson. She carried the shotgun in a bag for a change of shoes, and wrapped the barrel sticking out with paper.
As a result of the tragedy, one schoolgirl, 14-year-old Maria N., died, while five other students - four boys and one girl - were taken to hospitals with moderate injuries.
As a student of the gymnasium told Izvestia at the time, classmates were poisoning Alina. That day she was late for class, went up to the fourth floor, went into the classroom, sat down, took out a shotgun and started shooting at her abusers, after which she killed herself.
Employees of the Investigative Committee of the Russian Federation while working in gymnasium No. 5 in Bryansk, where an eighth-grader staged a shooting attack
Dmitry Afanaskin was detained immediately after the tragedy. On the fact of the incident, he was charged with negligent possession of weapons.
Alina's 53-year-old father explained to investigators that he did not know about the missing gun and stored it according to all the rules: in a metal cabinet under a lock. All documents for the "Bekas" 16-caliber he had in order. How the girl got the gun, the man did not see, but assumed that his daughter stole the key to the gun safe.
He added that he himself used to work "in the security field" - in a private security company. After quitting his job, he tried to sell the Bekas-3 on a gun classifieds website, but was unsuccessful.
Why the court closed the trial
Dmitry Afanaskin assured investigators that he knew nothing about the bullying his daughter allegedly experienced at school. Teachers at the gymnasium also told Izvestia that nothing foreshadowed the tragedy.
Two days after the accident, investigators opened a criminal case against Dmitry Afanaskin for leading him to suicide. The court found that the girl's father put pressure on her. However, he himself did not admit guilt and refused to testify.
On December 9, 2023, the court arrested the director of the security agency "Excalibur", guarding the gymnasium, Sergei Poddubny and security guard Galina Chertkova, and the deputy director of the gymnasium for administrative and economic work Larisa Katolikova chose a measure of restraint in the form of house arrest.
Dmitry Afanaskin, father of the schoolgirl who committed a shooting in the gymnasium, during the election of a preventive measure, December 10, 2023
All three defendants appealed against their arrests, and a few days later the Bryansk Regional Court commuted their preventive measure. Sergei Poddubny was released from pre-trial detention on bail of 1.5 million rubles, while Galina Chertkova was sent to house arrest. Larisa Katolikova was replaced house arrest with a ban on certain actions.
Poddubny and Chertkova are suspected of providing services that do not meet safety requirements and caused the death of two persons, while Katolikova is suspected of negligence causing death by negligence. The investigation on them is still underway.
In addition, the court released Dmitry Afanaskin from the pre-trial detention center, also imposing a ban on certain actions. The court may soften the measure of restraint, if it concludes that the defendants do not pose a danger to society and will not obstruct the investigation, told "Izvestia" partner of the Law Office "Aveks Just" Egor Panin.
At the moment, only one article appears in the case of Dmitry Afanaskin - negligent storage of weapons, according to the court card. The session began with the announcement by the prosecutor of the charges against the defendant. Representatives of the minor victims appealed to the court with a motion to hold the hearing in closed mode. The court granted it.
"Izvestia" appealed to the press service of the IC with a request to explain the status of the case of driving to suicide. But they replied that investigators do not comment on this information.
Difficulties of Proof
According to judicial statistics, only 20 people will be convicted in Russia under the article on incitement to suicide in 2023, said Daniil Gorkov, a partner at the MILL law firm, in a conversation with Izvestia. This tiny figure on a national scale primarily indicates the difficulty in proving and investigating this crime, the lawyer believes.
-Not only the content of the threat itself, but also its repetition and duration are important for the charges of leading to suicide," the lawyer said. - In addition, not every threat can be considered as a way to drive to suicide.
The presentation of such charges is possible only with a deep understanding of the psychological profile of the victim, the lawyer added. But it is often impossible to restore this portrait in the investigation of this category of cases.
- The accusation of the director of "Excalibur" looks much more promising from the point of view of proof," said Daniil Gorkov. - The number of convictions in this category is much higher, and the practice can be called mature.
Since the crime of which the girl's father is accused is a crime of minor gravity, the maximum sentence cannot exceed two years of imprisonment, Yegor Panin told Izvestia.
- However, it should be taken into account that persons who committed a crime of minor gravity for the first time (in the absence of aggravating circumstances) punishment in the form of real deprivation of liberty is not appointed, - said the lawyer.
According to Panin, the case of driving to suicide could be terminated with a high degree of probability, if the charge was not confirmed by sufficient evidence.
- This is indirectly evidenced by the change of the preventive measure to a ban on certain actions, because the maximum sentence under the article on negligent storage of weapons does not allow keeping a person in a pre-trial detention center," he explained.
The director of the security company and his colleague, who are accused of providing services that do not meet safety requirements, face up to ten years. The director of the gymnasium, accused of negligence, faces up to seven years in prison, the lawyer explained.
