The proof that Putin’s Russia is nothing more than a criminal state

Torture by the state is prohibited under the Russian criminal code – not that it seems to make much difference, warns Kim Sengupta. What we are seeing in the treatment of the Moscow attack suspects is nothing short of revelling in violence

Saidakrami Rachabalizoda’s ear was seemingly cut off by a security officer and then stuffed into his gagging mouth – he appeared in court the next day with a large bandage (AP)

The images from Moscow’s Crocus City Hall conveyed the full horror of the savage massacre: 137 people slaughtered, another hundred left injured in pools of blood in the attack carried out by Islamist terrorists.

Then, other graphic footage began to appear. One of the suspected gunmen, 30-year-old Saidakrami Rachabalizoda, lying on the ground as a security officer seemingly cut off his ear and stuffed it into his gagging mouth. He appeared in Moscow’s Basmanny District Court the next day with a large bandage covering the missing ear.

Another photo circulated online showed a second suspect, 25-year-old Shamsidin Fariduni, with his trousers and underwear around his knees, wires from a battery attached to his genitals, while a man stands on his leg. Comments could be heard, off-camera, on the best way to extract information with this method while inflicting pain.