Moscow detention center reportedly forces defense lawyers to strip at checkpoint before client visits
Guards at Moscow's pretrial detention center No. 4 have begun requiring defense attorneys to remove underwear during checkpoint searches, according to lawyer Anastasia Georgievskaya. Attorneys who refused were denied access to their clients.
Defense attorneys visiting Moscow's pretrial detention center No. 4, nicknamed "Medved," are now being required to remove their underwear during security checks before meeting clients, according to attorney Anastasia Georgievskaya.
Georgievskaya said the searches are not conducted in a private room but take place openly at the facility's checkpoint, in view of other people present. She said guards told her to remove her bra, claiming it had triggered the metal detector.
How the search unfolded
According to Georgievskaya, the search was carried out by a female staff member who asked bystanders to turn away, which they did. Even so, the procedure itself happened in the open, at the checkpoint rather than in a designated search room. A male colleague ahead of her in line was told to unzip his jeans, and the search proceeded with his pants pulled down and underwear exposed.
Georgievskaya noted that not all attorneys agreed to comply with the new procedure. Those who refused were ultimately barred from seeing their clients.
The account was first reported by the outlet Meduza, based on Georgievskaya's testimony.
