The Basmanny District Court of Moscow sentenced the commander of the 1st battalion of the traffic police regiment of the traffic police of the Internal Affairs Directorate for the Central District of the capital, 41-year-old Alexei Shevtsov, to a fine, finding him guilty of abuse of office. According to the investigation, he ordered to point out not a familiar operative, but his father as the culprit of the accident, but the policeman failed to avoid criminal prosecution in this way: he was sentenced to a five-year term.
Aleksey Shevtsov, who was under house arrest, came to the verdict along with his son, who decided to support his father. Meanwhile, the presiding Elena Lenskaya, having announced the introductory and operative parts of the verdict, announced that Alexei Shevtsov was found guilty of abuse of office (Article 286 of the Criminal Code), but was sentenced not even to a suspended sentence, but to a fine of 60 thousand rubles. His convict will have to pay after the entry into force of the sentence.
According to the investigation, the accident that caused the criminal proceedings occurred on Pokrovka Street in the late evening of December 28, 2019. At that time, junior lieutenant of the police Maxim Safronov, the detective of the criminal investigation department of the OMVD in the Basmanny district, in his Mitsubishi Pajero, hit a man at an unregulated crossing, who was seriously injured as a result.
A traffic police crew arrived at the scene of the incident, which, as it was established by the court, included Aleksey Shevtsov. Security officer Safronov decided to take advantage of this. He agreed with the battalion commander to instruct his subordinate to file an accident not for him, but for his father, who allegedly was driving an SUV, so that as a police officer he would not receive a more severe punishment.
The protocol was drawn up as requested by the lieutenant, but the investigation, having figured it out, found out that Safronov Jr. was still driving the Mitsubishi Pajero. He was charged with violating traffic rules with causing grievous bodily harm and leaving the scene of the incident (clause “b” part 2 of article 264 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation). By the verdict of the Basmanny Court, the officer was sentenced to a five-year term, and the inspector who filed an accident for another person sat down for three years.
Like his colleagues, battalion commander Shevtsov refused to admit guilt, claiming that on December 28 he was only inspecting the work of his subordinates and could not give instructions to anyone. At the same time, he claimed that the father of Lieutenant Safronov, who later fled the scene, was indeed driving the Mitsubishi Pajero. And the officer’s father was driving because Maxim Safronov allegedly forgot his driver’s license at home and could not drive a vehicle.
After evaluating these testimonies, the court agreed with the opinion of the prosecutor, who asked to convict the defendant. Leaving the hall, Mr. Shevtsov told Kommersant that he did not even agree with the fine. “I didn’t give any instructions to my subordinate, but this case was simply hung up on me,” he said. “I will appeal the verdict.”