Russia’s Investigative Committee claims protesters offered money in case of arrest

Russia’s Investigative Committee has said that the participants of the March 26 protest were promised money in case of their detention. Russia’s general directorate for the investigation of especially important cases is verifying this information.

The Investigative Committee report said that investigation is a part of criminal case launched under the three articles of Russia’s Criminal Code: threatening the life of a policeman, the use of violence against a police officer, and hooliganism.

Earlier, Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said that that teenagers who participated in the mass actions were promised money in the event of their detention. Peskov did not say who specifically had promised the teenagers remuneration.

A criminal case of threatening the life of a law enforcement officer was initiated after an attack on a policeman in Moscow. A criminal case of the use of violence against a police officer was initiated in Volgograd against a student at a pedagogical university. No criminal case on hooliganism was previously reported on.

On March 26, dozens of anti-corruption protests were held Russian cities. In many cases, they were not pre-approved by authorities. Police detained rallies participants. In Moscow, more than a thousand people were arrested.