Moscow prison official loses job after reporter uncovers that he sold ‘VIP’ treatment to wealthy, connected inmates

The deputy director of a Moscow pretrial detention center has been fired following the results of an investigation into “VIP prison cells,” and three subordinates have been subjected to “serious disciplinary measures,” according to the news agency Interfax. Local prosecutors are also calling for a criminal investigation.

In December 2017, Moskovsky Komsomolets published an article by journalist Eva Merkacheva revealing that the “Matrosskaya Tishina” Moscow penitentiary operated several “luxury prison cells” for wealthy inmates, offering dramatically better living conditions than ordinary prisoners enjoy.

On January 10, the Federal Investigative Committee banned Merkacheva and another four members of Moscow’s Public Monitoring Commission from visiting Matrosskaya Tishina’s detention center.