WASHINGTON – U.S. Senator Benjamin L. Cardin (D-MD), Chairman of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe (U.S. Helsinki Commission) and Co-Chairman Congressman Alcee L. Hastings (D-FL) expressed concerns today about the state of the Russian judicial system after learning that anti-corruption lawyer Sergei Magnitsky died Monday while being held in a pre-trial detention facility.
“I am troubled to learn of the recent death of Sergei Magnitsky,” Chairman Cardin said. “Magnitsky was incarcerated on apparently fabricated charges designed to end his inquiries into one of the largest cases of official corruption in modern Russian history. His death, while in official custody, raises serious questions about his treatment and overall conditions in Russian jails.”
Mr. Magnitsky, 37, was a father of two children and a highly regarded professional, who advised Hermitage Capital Management and hundreds of U.S. and foreign companies active in the Russian market. He had been held on tax evasion charges since Nov. 24, 2008.
Hermitage Capital Management CEO Bill Browder testified before the Helsinki Commission in June and said, “The situation in Russia is going from ‘bad’ back to ‘horrible’ – and it will be more than just investors who lose out in this process.”
“Tragically, it appears that Mr. Browder was correct. On top of a multi-million dollar corruption scheme and a legal nightmare for corporations trying to do honest work, we now mourn the death of a young lawyer who was simply trying to stand up to a broken judicial system,” Co-Chairman Hastings.
For video:
See the 10-minute Hermitage video about the corruption they faced here. Mr. Magnitsky is specifically mentioned in the video at 4:18 and 9:30.
