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Russian police chief gets life for drunk shooting spree

© RIA Novosti . Andrey Stenin / Go to the mediabankRussian police chief gets life for drunk shooting spree
Russian police chief gets life for drunk shooting spree - Sputnik International
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The Moscow City Court sentenced former police chief Maj. Denis Yevsyukov to life in prison for last year's shooting spree in a Moscow supermarket which left two people dead and seven injured.

The Moscow City Court sentenced former police chief Maj. Denis Yevsyukov to life in prison for last year's shooting spree in a Moscow supermarket which left two people dead and seven injured.

Yevsyukov was found guilty of all charges, except for "illegal possession of arms."

His defense lawyers said they would appeal the sentence.

The random shooting by the former head of a Moscow police station sparked nationwide outrage and prompted the dismissals of a number of top police officials in the Russian capital.

Yevsyukov shot a female cashier when he began firing in a supermarket after an argument with his wife at a party, and also fatally wounded a taxi driver just before. He was also charged with attempted murder of 20 other people in the store and of police officers who tried to detain him.

Yevsyukov, who has been found completely sane and competent to stand trial after a psychiatric examination, partly admitted his guilt.

The prosecutor said he had pleaded guilty to the killing shown on the video tape taken from the supermarket's surveillance cameras and claimed he could not remember the rest.

Investigators said Yevsyukov fired at police officers who attempted to apprehend him in the supermarket's backyard, but injured no one.

The prosecutor said all victims and witnesses in the case had confirmed the prosecution's standing. Earlier reports said some 30 people had been questioned by investigators.

President Dmitry Medvedev ordered a major overhaul of police ranks in the wake of the Yevsyukov scandal in April 2009 and a series of other reports of police atrocities, including beating a journalist to death in custody.

Medvedev ordered Interior Ministry personnel cuts by 20% over the next two years to be balanced by higher salaries for remaining staff in a bid to address public anger and avert negative perceptions of police, also fueled by widespread corruption.

On Thursday, Medvedev ordered the discharge of 17 top police generals as part of ongoing efforts to reform the police force.

Also on Thursday, Medvedev moved to introduce tougher punishment for police found guilty of crimes, submitting a bill to the parliament imposing harsher sentences than for civilians convicted of similar offences.

The president signed an order to halve the federal Interior Ministry's senior administration to 10,000 people as part of the reform drive, and urged new anti-corruption measures and tighter selection procedures for police personnel.

MOSCOW, February 19 (RIA Novosti)

 

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