Zolotarev, who suffered bruises on his left arm, spine and thigh, said the attack was retaliation for the newspaper’s reporting on corruption. "They tried to intimidate me, and they’ve succeeded," Zolotarev told Radio Svoboda. "Investigators see the beating as directly linked to my professional work, they are convinced it was a pre-meditated crime," Zolotarev said. His lawyer said the reason might be a report on the work of Serpukhov town council.
"There have been similar incidents in Khimki, Saratov, and elsewhere. If they had wanted to, they might have crippled or even killed me, but they didn’t," Zolotarev said. He warned other journalists writing on politics to, "think a thousand times before sitting down to write political stuff. I was warned. Now I am warning you. And yes, I am quitting my journalistic work."
The Committee to Protect Journalists has called for a thorough investigation.
