MOSCOW ? A government probe into the death in prison of a Russian lawyer who exposed official corruption covered up a brutal beating he received in prison and the deliberate denial of medical treatment, a new report claimed Monday.
Sergei Magnitsky, who was arrested after accusing officials of corruption, died in November 2009 after the pancreatitis he developed in prison went untreated. Two prison doctors have been charged with negligence.
The 37-year-old had been arrested by the same Interior Ministry officials whom he had accused of using false tax papers to steal $230 million from the state.
Monday's report was compiled by William Browder, a U.S.-born investor who owned and run Hermitage Capital Management, the investment fund Magnitsky had worked for before his arrest.
It chronicled the developments in Magnitsky's case, starting from the alleged tax fraud he had exposed to his prison torment and death that followed a beating by prison guards that led to his death. Compiled in a captivating, graphic way it also contained the evidence of what it described as an official coverup of Magnitsky's death, complete with pictures of dozens Russian officials it claimed were responsible for the death.
"All Government bodies systematically denied Sergei Magnitsky any form of medical attention," the report said.
Russian President Dmitry Medvedev acknowledged in July that crimes had been committed in the case, but the Interior Ministry later denied any official wrongdoing and the official probe into Magnitsky's death has only led to charges of negligence against the two doctors. Russia's top investigative agency, the Investigative Committee, refused to comment on Browder's report Monday.
The Prosecutor General's office, which in August reopened a criminal investigation against Magnitsky 20 months after his death, also denied comment.
Browder's report also contained pictures of luxury houses, expensive cars and other assets allegedly obtained by officials exposed by Magnitsky.
"The Russian government knows exactly who tortured and killed Sergei Magnitsky, as well as who stole $230 mln, but has refused to investigate and prosecute them," it concluded.
A panel of Russian rights activists had conducted its own probe into Magnitsky's death and presented the results to Medvedev. It concluded that Magnitsky's arrest and detention was unlawful, he was beaten before his death, and his prosecution by officers earlier implicated by him in corruption violated Russian law.
The U.S. State Department decided in July to ban entry to some 60 Russian officials, reportedly including senior figures in the Russian Interior Ministry, as well as judges, prosecutors and prison officials whom Magnitsky's colleagues had held responsible for his death.
Angered by the U.S. move, Russia last month banned entry to unidentified U.S. officials it claimed had been involved in killings and abductions.
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