Russian police red-faced over ´human shield´ case

The footage of the police´s bid to block a suspected criminal with the ˝human shield˝ of civilian cars has become internet sensation.

MOSCOW, March 10, 2010 (AFP) - Russia's scandal-tainted police force was embroiled in fresh controversy Wednesday after motorists were ordered to move their cars into the path of a high-speed car chase.

Investigators said they were checking whether police broke the law in the incident on the Moscow ringroad last week which provoked a furious public reaction after a driver posted an Internet video detailing the case.

The footage of the police's bid to block a suspected criminal with the "human shield" of civilian cars has already been viewed more than 154,000 times in the latest example of the use of the Internet to highlight police abuses.

"The cynicism and thoughtlessness of those officials put the lives of people at risk," Mikhail Grishankov, an MP with the ruling United Russia party told NTV television.

Members of the State Duma, the lower house of parliament, Wednesday submitted an official request for police to provide information on the incident, Russian television said.

Driver Stanislav Sutyagin said in the video posted that he was driving on the Moscow ringroad on Friday when he was pulled over by traffic police and ordered to park his car partly across the next lane.

The traffic police did not explain the reason for the request, he said.

Seconds later, a criminal drove through at high speed, damaging Sutyagin's car and several other vehicles, including one carrying a pregnant woman, he said.

Police told drivers that they would not receive any compensation because the armed criminal got away, Sutyagin complained, saying that drivers were used as a "human shield."

"Are our lives really worth nothing in our country?" he asked, calling the police actions "complete lawlessness."

The investigative committee of prosecutors said Wednesday that Moscow investigators would "give a legal assessment of the actions of the police and take a decision on the procedure."

The scandal comes a month after President Dmitry Medvedev ordered sweeping reforms to Russia's interior ministry after a series of high-profile cases in which police have been convicted of corruption offences and violent crimes.

Traffic police on Tuesday apologized for the order and said that the police commander responsible had been given a warning.