Russia’s prison population hits all-time low

The number of people in Russian penitentiary facilities has gone down to the lowest level since collapse of the USSR, the Federal Penitentiary Service (FSIN) told TASS on the eve of the Penitentiary Day, marked on March 12. Back in 1879, Emperor Alexander II established the prison department.

As of March 1, 2017, the federal authority registered 626,000 prisoners, including 48,918 women. The correction inspections have registered 417,450 people who serve terms outside prisons - at home.

More than 107,000 people were in pre-trial prisons in beginning of the year, at penitentiary facilities - about 523,000 people, including more than 40,000 women and about 20,000 disabled.

While in the late 1990s, behind the bars in Russia were more people than at the times of the USSR, in recent times the number of suspects, sentenced and imprisoned has been declining.

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