In the Novorossiysk pre-trial detention center, 67-year-old Jehovah's Witness Valery Bailo died. Relatives claim that he complained about his health condition, but medical assistance was not provided to him, reported the «Caucasian Knot»**.
On March 21, lawyer Sergey Yanovsky filed a statement with the investigative department for the city of Novorossiysk of the Investigative Committee of Russia for the Krasnodar Territory regarding a «committed crime» in connection with the death of detainee Valery Bailo. In the statement, the lawyer demanded «to conduct an investigation into the death of a person in the pre-trial detention center, to identify and bring to criminal responsibility those guilty, <...> who did not provide the mandatory medical assistance to the defendant».
Yanovsky noted that Bailo was not provided with medical assistance at all, despite regular appeals to the medical unit. «I saw my client for the last time on February 5, a month and a half before his death. He was emaciated and said he could not eat due to severe acute pain, but he was denied medical assistance in the medical unit. It seems he died of exhaustion and hunger, as he suffered greatly with his stomach, but was not examined. And this problem, as far as I know, had been with him since the summer of last year. I wrote a lot of statements, but no one responded to them», the lawyer told the publication. He emphasized that the last complaint was written on March 7, 2025, to the General Prosecutor's Office of Russia regarding the lack of medical assistance to Bailo and the misuse of funds in attempts to provide it. No response has been received to date.
Last spring, the Abinsk court sentenced Bailo to two years and six months of imprisonment on charges of involvement in an «extremist organization». In September 2024, Bailo's relatives stated that they were concerned about his health.
* Recognized as an «extremist» organization in Russia.
** Recognized as a «foreign agent» in Russia.