Analytics, Corruption, Direct Speech, Latvia, Legislation
International Internet Magazine. Baltic States news & analytics
Friday, 29.03.2024, 14:54
Threats for the safety of business and society as exemplified by one criminal scheme
The rule of law – one of the main principles of law-bound
state; violation of this principle jeopardise the existence of law-bound state itself,
endangers the safety of citizens and undermines confidence in government
institutions.
Danger of
violation of the rule of law principle appears when separate empowered
representatives of the society in state service are using the available state resources for mercenary purposes.
The biggest
danger in this context are the employees of power-wielding agencies –
law-enforcement agencies and intelligence services, as long as they have large
powers to perform shadowing, tapping collecting large data files, restrict
freedoms of citizens, access to weapons etc. Such situation is dangerous when
employees of intelligence services are acting in cooperation with criminals,
creating the criminal groups.
In case of
lack of proper supervision by social institutions, the activity of
law-enforcement agencies and special services becomes almost unsupervised. Arbitrariness results in
lawlessness, when separate employees of intelligence services become
organizers of murders, terrorist acts, kidnapping for mercenary purposes.
Let me
present you one example how it is done. It is not a solitary instance. During
the past two decades this scheme (and analogues) were implemented by corrupt
employees of intelligence services several times to extort money from
entrepreneurs, to capture successful businesses, for racketeering and
redistribution of power.
First of all, a group of employees from intelligence services
with large powers picks the “victim” and collects necessary information. A
fishing expedition method is being used – collection of information about the
victim by all means, including shadowing, wiretapping, illegal searches
grounded by applications of criminal’s and informants of intelligence services.
Then the
informant of intelligence services appears near to the “victim”. Often he
represents a criminal world, previously convicted or accused in pending
criminal proceedings. He is being supported by intelligence services, so he
could act without fear for being responsible for his criminal activities and have
an axe to grind. Actually, any inhabitant of the state could become such
“victim” if he caused interest for criminals for some reason.
Second stage of this scheme is an extortion itself.
Informant of intelligence services becomes the main character, as long as he:
а) presents
the demands of extorters,
б) in case
of intractability of victim, performs activities to intimidate the “victim” and
force he or she to comply with demands of extorters.
It shall be
mentioned that as long as intelligence services have almost infinite
possibilities, its’ informant enjoys the same infinite possibilities. There was
a case when not only threats and blackmailing were implemented to force the
victim, but also theft of documents, attempted kidnapping of family members,
organization of explosions, murders, terrorist acts.
It is quite
natural that a victim, being law-abiding person facing such criminal mayhem
turns to law-enforcement agencies for protection. Criminal proceedings being
initiated under the application of victim and the informant of intelligence
services becomes the accused person.
However, at third stage, instead of protection
the victim gets a huge amount of counter criminal and administrative proceedings,
fabricated under totally absurd accusations! But the most important is that initiator of all the amount of counter
criminal proceedings is… the same informant of intelligence services.
There was a
case when after the application to the police the victim himself was involved
in 150 (!) criminal and administrative proceedings within several months and
these proceedings were initiated under applications of… extorter-informant.
Actually
the legal “roundabout” is being created, when same persons are suspects,
witnesses and victims in dozens of criminal proceedings. Number of such
proceedings could increase exponentially: accused person in one proceedings
writes applications against the victim, new criminal proceedings are being
initiated and they change places.
The
“victim” becomes object of unexampled pressure – physical, moral and
psychological. In presentational scheme a “victim” was summoned to
law-enforcement agencies 125 times, to the court – 306 times within a single
year. Consider this: it is twice as many
as weekdays in a year! In other words, every day (!) twice a day (!) during
the whole year (!) a person was to visit different law-enforcement agencies –
police, courts and other. This has nothing in common with observance of human
rights on private life and freedom of movement, on family and business – basic
human rights in law-bound state!
Simultaneously
to create particular public opinion and put pressure on the victim, information attacks and massive
compromising campaigns are being carried out in medias.
It is
obvious that creation of such “roundabouts” would be impossible without a
proper cover from interested persons from intelligence services and
law-enforcement agencies.
It is also
obvious that such legal “roundabouts” allows intelligence services to avoid
suspicion and responsibility for their informants.
The fourth stage generally brings the outcome. The victim could
stop the resistance and goes through hoops for extorters – involved criminals
and employees of intelligence services. Or the extorters meet less favourable
scenario: the “victim” keeps standing against them.
It results
in full-scale abuse of state resources
by criminals: one criminal cases are being divided to other ones, criminal
proceedings are pending years long, court sessions are being postponed over and
over again.
Despite the
fact that same persons are present in more than a hundred criminal proceedings,
being either victims, or suspects, all the proceedings are being tried
separately, creating almost unlimited
possibilities to delay the trials!
Endless
flow of proceedings ensures the law-enforcement agencies and intelligence
services with possibility to endlessly persecute one and the same “victim”,
e.g. perform endless wiretapping of conversations of a “victim”, his or her
family members and relatives to collect some information.
Deep
analysis of described scheme allows to rise several serious problems, existence
of which causes a great threat to the security of inhabitants and creating lack
of confidence in people that their state could ensure one of important
functions – protection.
1) First of all:
impartial investigation should be able to assess participants of the
proceedings with a critical eye. Supervising public prosecutor shall be
informed if some of the participants of criminal proceedings are actually
informants of intelligence services to be able to assess testimonies in
impartial manner.
2) Secondly: The
malpractice of creation of legal “roundabouts” when one and the same persons
are being victims and suspects in large amount of criminal proceedings shall
come to an end.
3) Thirdly: evidences
of creation of legal “roundabouts” should be assessed as signs of crimes and
abuse of powers with all the consequences that come with it for organizers from
intelligence services and law-enforcement agencies.
4) Fourthly: The
practice when criminals become informants of intelligence services with a
single purpose – to avoid liability for committed crimes shall come to an end.
5) Fifthly: It shall
be considered that criminal proceedings, lasting for years are violating human
rights on private life, freedom of movement, on family, rights to do business
etc. In this context investigative institutions and courts shall ensure the
adjudication of cases within a
reasonable time frame.
Only in
law-bound state citizens could be sure of security for themselves and their
families, business and the accessibility of protection if they are turning to
the law-enforcement agencies.
The main
principle of democracy shall be observed – the rule of law over a person, not
vice versa.