YEKATERINBURG. Aug 5 (Interfax-AVN) - Over 40 people are facing criminal charges in connection with mass riots at the Kirovogradskaya correctional facility (in Sverdlovsk region) in October 2007, during which two inmates and an on-duty prison officer died, said Kirill Teterin of the Sverdlovsk Prosecutor's Office, which oversees legal compliance at correctional facilities.
During an inquiry into the incident, a great number of prison officers were punished, Teterin told a press conference at the Interfax office in Yekaterinburg on Tuesday.
"Prosecutors have completed their checks, conclusions have been made. A criminal dossier regarding the mass prison riots is due to be sent to a court in October," the prosecutor said.
One of the failures by prison officers was "the presence of inmates with a negative attitude in amateur groups," he said.
It was reported that in the early hours of October 17, 2007, a group of juvenile inmates at the Kirovogradskaya correctional facility tried to break through a fence. Guards opened fire, which led to two teenagers being fatally wounded. An on-duty prison officer also died of sustained injuries. Another 15 people - both inmates and prison officers - were hospitalized.
Charges have been brought against 16 active rioters. There are 72 victims in the case, including more than 60 prison officers and inmates who refused to take part in the riots.