In Russian cities, the police are once again rounding up to hand over subpoenas to men who fall under the criteria of the "partial" mobilization announced by Vladimir Putin. Police officers stop men at metro stations in Moscow, and are also on duty near the entrances to residential complexes, “comb” shopping centers in other cities, and even take homeless people to military registration and enlistment offices. The Insider collected only some cases of illegal raids on Russians.
On October 14, the Telegram channel “Caution, News” published a selection of photos and videos of eyewitnesses about raids near metro stations in Moscow.
Officers issued summonses at Maryina Roshcha, Novokosino and Alekseevskaya stations, and also checked the documents of men near the Shchukinskaya metro station. At the same time, some people were taken to police cars. Somewhere, because of the raids, queues formed at the entrance to the subway.
In St. Petersburg, a local resident filmed a policewoman and two men in civilian clothes guarding men leaving the house in house 68 in the Polustrovo Park residential complex. According to her, they have been standing there since 7:30 a.m. to serve subpoenas to all eligible tenants. The footage was posted by Baza in the Telegram channel.
Tell me, do you have a conscience?
– Goodbye.
Raids in St. Petersburg also take place at other addresses. The police, together with men in civilian clothes, have been blocking exits from the entrances since early morning and handing out subpoenas, including in the Kalina Park and Polustrovo Park residential complexes. According to Baza sources, it is almost impossible for men in these residential complexes to leave the house without a summons.
The fact that the police are organizing raids is confirmed not only by numerous videos and photos on the network. Kirill Kabanov, a member of the Human Rights Council (HRC) under the President of Russia, said that he was approached by employees of the Moscow City Telephone Network company. They said that at the Shchelkovskaya station in Moscow, the police grab everyone who does not have a certificate of armor.
“Near the Shchelkovskaya metro station, the above-mentioned worker was detained during a raid on dodgers. According to him, they grabbed everyone and stated that there should be a certificate that there was a reservation … I thought that the stories about the raids were fake, but I was told by people whom I personally know and whom I completely trust. I will ask the chairman of the HRC to apply to the prosecutor's office for a legal assessment.”
Senator, head of the Committee on Constitutional Legislation and State Building Andrei Klishas commented on the incident on his Telegram channel:
“Each such signal must be verified, and if confirmed, the actions of the officials who authorized such raids must be given a legal assessment.”
He explained that no legal restrictions on the rights of citizens were introduced in the country, all constitutional rights and guarantees, including freedom of movement, are in full force. He also reposted a message urging "to mobilize, first of all, the leader and accomplices of the raids," as "their invaluable experience will come in handy in battle." The senator called this approach correct.
While even the authorities acknowledge illegal raids on the streets of Russian cities, the pro-Kremlin Komsomolskaya Pravda writes , citing some experts, that reports on social networks “about alleged police raids on multifunctional centers, restaurants and hostels, patrols on the streets and people from management companies throwing subpoenas into mailboxes" are fakes.
Information about raids in Russian cities as part of the mobilization announced by Putin appeared earlier. A few days ago in Moscow, the police began to walk around the hostels and look for men suitable for mobilization, the administrators of these hostels told RTVI.
According to the publication, on the first day, the police were looking for citizens aged 25-35 years, on the second day – up to 45 years. As a result, two guests aged 27 and 30 were mobilized, and another one is “preparing to be sent.” Several people were also taken from another hostel.
“Those who served were taken away their passports and ordered to come the next day with things. Those who did not serve were released."
Kholod learned that the police were taking men from hostels to mobilization points at the Viktyuk Theater and at the Moskino Molodezhny cinema. The publication also notes that the men were not given their passports until they signed the summons. Some were given summer military uniforms right in the theater, and then taken to the Patriot Park for training.
In September, the police raided the Olkhon shopping center in Ulan-Ude. The publication “People of Baikal”, citing eyewitnesses, reported that the police began to “clean up” the building from the first floor and reached the last, fourth. At the same time, they ordered male visitors and sellers to remain in their places until their identity was clarified. In the gym on the top floor, the police blocked the exits so that no one could leave the premises. At the same time, Buryatia is one of the leaders among Russian regions in terms of the number of mobilized. According to The Insider's source, the mobilization hit the small villages of the republic especially hard: “They are scratching the villages. People write that they take a lot of men, regardless of the criteria. There are 400 people in our village, 20 men were taken away.”
On October 9, activists of the “Food Not Bombs” project reported that the police were conducting raids on the homeless in Moscow, after which they were issued subpoenas and taken to the military registration and enlistment offices. The homeless themselves told the project participants that when they arrived in the Hangar on October 8 (homeless people warm and eat there), the police arrived there. They took away people's passports, loaded them into cars and took them to the military registration and enlistment office, where they wrote out subpoenas. From there they were taken to the recruiting station. Those over 50 were released.
The increased frequency of open round-ups of police officers to call citizens to war is illegal. The government portal " Explain.rf " reported that it was impossible to serve subpoenas on the street. The Russians asked if a police officer or a military commissariat officer could fill out a summons on the street before handing it to a citizen. The answer says that all summonses must be drawn up in advance and certified at the military registration and enlistment office.
"The agenda must be drawn up in advance, signed by the military commissar and certified by the seal of the military registration and enlistment office."