Police, officials find no fault with fine

RIGA - Officers with Riga Municipal Police acted properly when they investigated an 88-year-old woman who was subsequently fined for making a false complaint, according to a police spokeswoman.

"This wasn't an investigation," said Sanita Brakanska. "It was just a thorough check of their work. All the police work was done legally."

On Feb. 22, Melanie Sveilis-Zeltins thought someone was breaking into her apartment. She called the police for help.

But by the time officers arrived, they found no one lurking at her door and accused her of lying, she claimed in documents filed with Riga City Central Region Court.

The officers, who, according to Sveilis-Zeltins, said they found no evidence of a break-in, submitted their information to Riga City Central Region Administrative Commission.

The commission decided on March 1 that Sveilis-Zeltins "deliberately and knowingly made a false complaint to the Municipal Police" and fined her 25 lats ($42).

It gave her until to March 15 to file an appeal of the decision; she did so on March 10 and hired a lawyer to fight the commission's decision.

The appeal has not yet been heard by the court.

In a previous interview, Brakanska said Municipal Police Chief Maris Liepins ordered a review of Sveilis-Zeltins' case after she was informed about it.

On March 23, she said Sveilis-Zeltins should be faulted for her fine: "She is not following the law. We gave her an opportunity to come and tell her side of the story, but she refused."

Sveilis-Zeltins was invited to the administrative commission's meeting on March 1, Brakanska said, but she refused to attend and refused to sign any documents.

Raimonds Lomikovskis, the chair of the administrative commission, made a similar claim two weeks ago, suggesting every person is invited to participate in its hearings.

"She can appeal to the court if she wants, but the commission has made its decision," he said. "[Her] age doesn't matter. We charge old and young people."

But Sveilis-Zeltins, according to her son, never received a notice from the commission to appear; she received its decision on March 6, several days after the decision was made.

In her appeal, she stated she could have explained the entire incident to the commission, if only she was invited to its hearing.

Her son called on the commission to prove Sveilis-Zeltins received an invitation or if the letter was registered.

Meanwhile, the municipal police said false complaints are nothing extraordinary or uncommon: Brakanska said the number of calls has decreased in the last year, but there are usually 30 false complaints per month.

She rejected the idea that there were any problems between the public and the police force because of such incidents.

"There are some conflicts, but the relationship is not tense," said Brakanska. "The relationship is even better than the State Police has with the public."