The prosecutor's office apologized to the scientist who served six months in a pre-trial detention center by mistake. What was Alexander Tsvetkov accused of?

Hydrologist Alexander Tsvetkov, who served six months in a pre-trial detention center in the case of a series of massacres he allegedly committed 20 years ago, received an official apology from the Moscow prosecutor's office in connection with the illegal accusation. An apology for moral harm was made on behalf of the state, said Eva Merkacheva, a member of the Human Rights Council under the President of Russia (HRC).

Information confirmed portal “76.ru” Tsvetkov's wife Marina. The document, signed by a senior assistant to the capital's prosecutor, clarifies that the apology was made in connection with the termination of criminal prosecution by the investigator of the first department for the investigation of particularly important cases (crimes against the person and public safety) of the Main Investigation Department of the Investigative Committee of Russia for Moscow.

In December 2023, the scientist was released from pre-trial detention center

The scientist was charged under Part 2 of Article 105 of the Criminal Code and faced life imprisonment. In March 2023, the court sent Tsvetkov to a pre-trial detention center, but in December he was released from custody. The man's preventive measure was changed to a ban on certain actions.

At the end of February this year, law enforcement dropped all charges against an employee of the Russian Academy of Sciences who served six months in a pre-trial detention center. The criminal case against him was completely dropped.

Tsvetkov himself, in a conversation with the 76.ru portal, called the arrest and charges absurd. According to him, he was not even in Moscow at that time, but law enforcement officers tried to make him remember the events of twenty years ago.

Honestly, I thought it was some kind of mistake. It seemed to me that it should end within the next few hours, as sometimes happens with us. They asked me where I had been. They said: “Come on, remember where you were.” And you just can’t remember the past 20 years

Alexander Tsvetkovemployee of the Institute of Biology of Inland Waters of the Russian Academy of Sciences

What was the scientist accused of?

Tsvetkov was detained about a year ago at Domodedovo airport when he returned from another expedition. An airport facial recognition camera revealed a 55 percent similarity to an old sketch of an alleged gunman who carried out a series of massacres 20 years ago.

Then the case included the testimony of a man repeatedly convicted, who called the scientist his accomplice. However, he did not match the description made by the person involved.

At the same time, after Tsvetkov’s arrest, his colleagues provided documents that confirmed his innocence. They reported that on the indicated dates the scientist was on an expedition in the Kostroma and Vologda regions and could not possibly have been at the scene of the crimes. Colleagues also wrote a letter calling him non-violent.

The prosecution continued to insist that the employee of the Russian Academy of Sciences drank with a repeat offender at a friend’s house in the Moscow region, where he dealt with the second one, and then set his house on fire. On the same day, a pensioner and two other women allegedly became his victims. However, no traces or fingerprints were found at the incident sites.

Tsvetkov spent a total of 299 days in pre-trial detention. After his release, he told Lenta.ru that he intended to seek rehabilitation and compensation. The scientist added that in his home village of Borok in the Yaroslavl region, people were confident of his innocence.