Stray Dogs Attack Children in Yasny; Criminal Case Filed
Authorities have opened a negligence case following attacks by stray dogs on minors in Yasny.
In Yasny, a pack of stray dogs is terrorizing local residents. And it«s not just barking: at least two attacks on children have been recorded — in one case, the child managed to run into an entrance, while in the other, bites could not be avoided. The situation has drawn attention from the prosecutor»s office and the Investigative Committee — here«s everything we know about it.
The legal portal questions whether measures are taken only after incidents occur.
“No Possibility”
Former official Anatoly Baikov was convicted for negligence in a prior dog attack case.
Residents of the yard on Stroitely Street and neighboring Lenina Street have long complained about a pack of dogs freely roaming the playground. As city dwellers told 56.RU, their fears are not unfounded: the dogs bark, growl, and show obvious aggression towards passersby (especially children). On January 13, this led to an attack near house No. 11 on Lenina Street. Fortunately, an 8-year-old boy managed to run into the entrance and was not bitten.
Valery Mikhailovskikh, an ex-official, faces trial over failure to address stray dog attacks in Orsk.
— Parents from the entire yard are sounding the alarm, appealing to the relevant authorities — the management company, local and district administration. However, instead of a prompt and decisive response, we face a bureaucratic machine, formal replies, promises that remain promises. “No contractor organization,” “no possibility,” “tender didn«t pass,” “file an application through Gosuslugi.” Time passes, and the dogs continue to pose a huge threat. Every day spent waiting for action increases the risk of tragic consequences, — locals told us literally the day before.
Footage from a Telegram channel captures the first incident of dogs chasing a boy.
And on the same day, January 20, what the townspeople feared happened: in the same area between Lenina and Stroitely Streets, the same pack of dogs attacked a 9-year-old child again. Footage from the doorbell camera shows that the boy was standing in the yard when several dogs ran up to him barking and knocked him to the ground. The child screamed hysterically and asked for help. A neighbor ran out of the house and chased the animals away, but they managed to bite the minor.
Doorbell camera footage records the second attack with dogs knocking a nine-year-old to the ground.
Law Enforcement Stirred
This did not go unnoticed by the Investigative Department of the Investigative Committee of Russia for the Orenburg Region: the department initiated a criminal case on the fact of negligence (Part 1 of Article 293 of the Criminal Code).
— The investigation will give a legal assessment of the actions of officials responsible for organizing a set of measures to capture stray animals in the Yasnensky Municipal District, — clarified in the Investigative Committee.
The investigation is under the control of the prosecutor«s office. The supervisory agency, following an inspection, specified that the problems arose precisely with local officials — “officials of the administration of the Yasnensky Municipal District showed criminal negligence.”
Only on the day of the second attack, by order of the head of the Ministry of Agriculture, an emergency situation regime was introduced in the Yasnensky Municipal District due to stray dogs (as in the neighboring closed administrative-territorial formation of Komarovsky, Perevolotsky District, and Kuvandyksky Municipal District, plus extended in Sorochinsky Municipal District, Buzuluksky and Novoorsky Districts, and canceled in Novotroitsk).
Not the First Incident
The most tragic case of a stray dog attack occurred in Orenburg in 2023. Then, on Koltsevaya Street, a pack of dogs tore a boy apart. Former head of the Municipal Housing and Utilities Department of the Orenburg Mayor«s Office Anatoly Baikov was held responsible for the schoolboy»s death. He was found guilty of negligence in concluding contracts for dog capture.
First, he was sentenced to two years in a colony, but soon it was replaced with forced labor in a correctional center with 10% of earnings withheld for the state, and he was banned from working in public service for the next two years. In addition, the mayor«s office must pay compensation for moral damage to residents of the regional center who suffered from dog bites in 2022/2023.
Later, the Orenburg Regional Court, after considering appellate complaints, satisfied the prosecutor«s demands, but only in part of increasing compensation for moral damage, and in everything else — refused. As did Baikov and his defender. The sentence was not changed by the Sixth Cassation Court of General Jurisdiction either.
Exactly under the same article “Negligence,” right now in the dock is the former head of the Municipal Housing and Utilities and Transport Department Valery Mikhailovskikh. The investigation believes that during the time he delayed concluding contracts for dog capture, at least 64 residents of Orsk suffered from dog bites, and of them, 43 — children (on one January day, there were immediately 6 attacks). And each of them is entitled to compensation through the court, and these are only those bitten who sought hospital and police help.
