Torture, Suicides, and Violence: Media Calculate Deaths in Russian Detention Centers

In Russia, in 2024, at least 50 people died during detention, in police stations, pre-trial detention centers, and other places of custody. The official cause of death is often cited as health problems, although there have been reported cases of suicides, violence, and deaths in fires, reports NewsBox.

Throughout 2024 in Russia, a minimum of 50 individuals died during detention, in police departments, pre-trial detention facilities, and other detention environments, according to an analysis by the publication "Verstka", which examined reports from media and state bodies.

According to the investigation's findings, 20 of the deceased were in pre-trial detention centers, 10 died in police departments, and another 5 in temporary detention facilities. Five individuals died in medical facilities where they were taken from detention centers or after being detained, four during attempts to detain them, three died in law enforcement vehicles. Additionally, one person died after being left outside from a police car in freezing temperatures without clothing, another died in an ambulance after detention, and one perished in a courthouse.

The most common officially stated causes of death include heart attacks, chronic illnesses, epilepsy, and pulmonary edema. Moreover, eight of the deceased were identified as having committed suicide, and six others reportedly died after experiencing "a sudden health deterioration."

Separate incidents of death due to violence and accidents were documented:

• Five soldiers who refused to be deployed to the front line died in a fire in a detention center in Yakutia.
• Three detainees were killed by FSB agents during special operations.
• Deaths reportedly occurred following beatings by cellmates, hunger strikes, and hypothermia.
• In eight instances, the cause of death remains unknown.