Police officer who gut-punched woman during Moscow protest reportedly identified

The Telegram-based investigative outlet Baza has submitted a request to the Moscow branch of Russia’s police force asking for a probe into the actions of Sergey Tsyplakov during Moscow’s August 10 election protest. The outlet suspects Tsyplakov of being the officer who punched protester Darya Sosnovskaya in the abdomen, after which she required a medical examination.

Baza’s journalists said they received some information about Tsyplakov’s service from his colleagues, but the officer himself did not respond to their questions.

Sosnovskaya was arrested during the August 10 protest after she objected to the arrest of another protester who has limited mobility. A police officer punched her after accidentally dropping his baton. Sosnovskaya has submitted a complaint askingfor charges to be brought against the officer involved, and leading human rights advocate Pavel Chikov offered a 100,000-ruble ($1,525) reward for identifying information about the officer. Baza Editor-in-Chief Nikita Mogutin declined the reward, leaving it to be transferred to Sosnovskaya’s attorney.

Update: RT has reported a claim from the Moscow police force that Tsyplakov was not involved in the attack on Sosnovskaya.