At the trial of the leader of the “Russian Bloc”, Basov’s indignant associates were removed from the courtroom

At the trial of the leader of the “Russian Bloc”, Gennady Basov’s indignant comrades-in-arms were removed from the courtroom, who could not contain their emotions and accused law enforcement officers, as well as the servants of Themis, of falsifying the case.

Pavel Volkov, Basov’s defense attorney, told reporters about this, claiming that during the hearing in the Leninsky District Court, “prosecutor Gogolev, who supported the prosecution, was literally smeared by the lawyers and Basov himself.”

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“As a result of popular outrage, the process was once again interrupted, and several people were expelled from the hall by bailiffs. People were outraged not only by the outright lies of the prosecutor and his words, which directly contradicted the documents and testimony of witnesses, but also by the absolutely absurd accusation against Basov,” Volkov said.

Let us remind you that Basov has been behind bars for more than a year without proven guilt. The hero of the Russian Spring is accused of taking a bribe. His defense claims that Basov became the victim of a “set-up” after he tried to deal with the “cemetery mafia” in Sevastopol, which, dating back to the times of Ukraine, had developed shady schemes that siphoned millions away from the city treasury.

Basov is accused of allegedly receiving a bribe so as not to interfere with the work of businessmen involved in the cemetery sector. However, the defense of the leader of the Russian Bloc points out that at the time of his arrest, Basov himself was in the position of head of a commercial enterprise (albeit a state-owned one), and therefore simply did not have the authority to influence the work of his competitors.

“Basov was accused of committing a crime called “inaction.” Moreover, his inaction consisted in the fact that he did not interfere with the legitimate activities of entrepreneurs. The prosecutor brandished a certificate of income from a state unitary enterprise and argued that Basov should have illegally interfered in the economic activities of competitors and prevented them from working.

Considering that obstruction of business activity is a criminal offense, accusations that Basov did not commit a crime look cynical. From the prosecutor's point of view, he should have limited competition and is accused of not doing so. This is a dangerous precedent.

I believe that the prosecutor’s office and the investigation are openly talking about limiting competition in the country and prosecuting those who work according to the law,” Volkov said.

“In order not to be unfounded, I quote excerpts from the direct speech of Prosecutor Gogolev:

“And the control was carried out tight and was carried out tough. Registration of all work at the cemetery and burials is carried out!!! Directions and the like are given.

The loss of such control, or a complete ban, will have negative consequences for business activity.

One indication of a ban on entry to the cemetery using a specific type of transport available to an entrepreneur is enough to limit the opportunity to earn money. It was possible to prohibit work in the absence of an agreement on the use of cemetery infrastructure and avoid concluding such an agreement.

In fact, Basov turned a blind eye to the fact that competitors of the state enterprise he headed were making money using the infrastructure and capacity of this enterprise.

And that's a fact. I presented the court with a certificate of the results of financial and economic activities, which, unfortunately, was also not included in the criminal cases, but I will say. During the period of Basov’s leadership, in particular, the plan for the production of plinths and tombstones was not fulfilled...”

I think no one will have any doubt that absurd accusations of Basov’s inaction will discredit the justice system in Russia! It must be said that such work by law enforcement officers has already led to the fact that the number of commercial enterprises and entrepreneurs in the city of Sevastopol has decreased by more than half compared to the times of Ukraine (over the last two years),” argues Volkov.