The investigation into an alleged child trafficking case in Moscow is continuing. On November 3, it emerged that two more suspects had been placed in custody. Their names were not officially disclosed, but the court told TASS that they were a businessman from the Moscow region and a woman whose child, according to investigators, may have been transferred to another family.
As Novaya-Europe noted, the Tverskoy District Court is reviewing case materials against Abdurakhmanov Sh. M. and Malaya O. V. under Article 127 of the Criminal Code. Both were arrested on October 30.
On the same day, the court ordered the detention of Irina Rudnitskaya until November 22. She is the chair and a clinical psychologist of the interregional organization “Community of Families, Families with Children and Socially Vulnerable Groups”. She has been charged under Article 127.1 of the Russian Criminal Code, which covers child trafficking. Her lawyer asked for a non-custodial measure, citing the children in her care, but prosecutors insisted on detention. The criminal case against Rudnitskaya and another defendant was opened in late August; if convicted under this article, she could face up to 10 years in prison and a ban on certain professional activities for up to 15 years.
Rudnitskaya’s organization was registered in 2017 and provides support for foster families, including psychological, informational and legal assistance. It also runs crisis centers for women in difficult situations.
According to Verstka, in 2022 Rudnitskaya became the guardian of Bohdan Yermokhin, a teenager taken from Mariupol. In November 2023, after appealing to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, Yermokhin returned to Ukraine via Belarus.