Russian Investigative Committee May Cut Staff and Transfer Functions to Prosecutors

Paul Goble

            Staunton, January 9 –The Russian Investigative Committee may cut staff and transfer functions to prosecutors in the transportation sector, the latest indication that “optimization” is hitting some hitherto sacrosanct government functions and a change if it happens that will shift the balance in the handling of some crimes, according to the URA news agency. 

            Aleksandr Lukmanov and Arseny Vaganov, two journalists for the Urals-based news agency, say that Investigative Committee head Aleksandr Bastrykin has directed a study, to be completed in the next month, on the possibility of eliminating investigative committees in the Russian transport sector (ura.news/news/1052414013).

            They publish a photostat of the two-page document, one that has not yet been issued by the Investigative Committee, and indicate that if the study group supports such a cutback, prosecutors will gain the whip hand in all cases involving transportation, something that will undoubtedly lead to more charges in some areas and fewer in others.

            In places like the Urals, where transportation infrastructure is especially significant, such shifts could have important consequences for regional officials. But what is most intriguing is that the Kremlin appears to have decided that financial stringencies mean it must cut back even in this law enforcement sector.

            No other such discussions have yet been reported, Lukmanov and Vaganov say, nor has the Investigative Committee in Moscow or in the Urals been willing to confirm or discuss this development. But if it is the opening move against this sector, it could trigger concerns across Russian law enforcement and even exacerbate divisions among this part of the Russian elite.