Twisted arms & crossbow: Ombudswoman demands probe into 'inhumane' corrections service promo (VIDEO)

Brutally twisting an inmate’s arms or aiming a crossbow at an apple placed on his head is no way to behave for a corrections officer even if it happens in a staged promo clip, a human rights ombudswoman for Russia’s Buryatia said.

The scandalous video was filmed to attract more people to join in the Federal Penitentiary Service in Buryatia, the country’s Asian region bordering Mongolia. It was initially posted on the agency’s Instagram account, but was swiftly removed after public outcry.

Corrections officers in blue uniforms sang about their job and the benefits they receive in the clip. People in prison robes were also there to help the servicemen show off their professional skills.

In one sequence, two female employees were seen harshly subduing an inmate by twisting his arms and grabbing the man by the hair.

Another controversial extract revolved around two male guards placing an apple on the head of a terrified detainee and aiming at it with a crossbow medieval style.

Buryatia ombudswoman, Yulia Zhambanova, was also irritated by those two specific moments, saying that it was “outrageous that the employees of the Federal Penitentiary Service do such things to the detainees and prisoners, no matter if they are actors.”

The video turned out “inhumane” and “the behavior of the officers should receive proper assessment from the supervisory authorities,” the ombudswoman pointed out, urging the agency to launch an internal probe over it.

Buryatia’s Corrections Service confirmed that the video was legit, adding that it was filmed as part of a creativity competition. The fictional depiction of criminality in the video bears no relation to the actual inmates, held in the correctional facilities of Buryatia, it added.

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