MOSCOW, February 5 (RAPSI) – Mikhail Fedotov, the Chairman of Russia’s Presidential Council for Human Rights (CHR), has once again spoken in favor of investigation of the case of Oyub Ttiyev, the head of the Chechen Republic’s office of Memorial NGO, by the federal authorities, a statement on the CHR website reads on Monday.

Among the reasons supporting the Council’s stance, Fedotov specifically noted the need to check the inference that drugs were planted in the activist’s car and investigate a series of attacks against Memorial offices in Ingushetia and Dagestan.

According to the Chechen Republic’s Interior Ministry, on January 9, police officers stopped Titiyev’s car during a preventive control operation. As police officers searched the car, a package filled with a plant-based substance smelling of marihuana was found. The package was then sent for analysis while the head of the office was brought in for a medical examination.

Earlier, Fedotov said that drugs might have been planted in the car because of Titiyev’s human rights activity. He believes that there are grounds for launching two criminal cases: over the discovery and over an alleged planting of drugs. Chechen Republic’s ombudsman Nurdi Nukhazhiyev stated earlier that police officers had not violated any laws.

On January 17, unknown assailants set on fire Memorial’s office in the Ingushetia Republic. On January 23, a car of the organization was set on fire in the Dagestan Republic.