Shortcomings in the Legislative Framework Governing Law Enforcement Intelligence Operations in Correctional Facilities and Solutions: Draft Proposal for Amending Penal Legislation
Agarkov A.V. Shortcomings in the legislative framework governing law enforcement intelligence operations in correctional facilities and solutions: draft proposal for amending penal legislation. Penitentiary Science, 2025, vol. 19, no. 4 (72), pp. 382–390. doi 10.46741/2686- 9764.2025.72.4.005.
in accordance with Article 84 of the Penal Code of the Russian Federation, law enforcement
intelligence operations are conducted in correctional facilities in accordance with the
Russian legislation. This provision refers to the federal law No. 144-FZ “On law enforcement intelligence
operations” of August 12, 1995. However, the task to identify, prevent, and uncover violations
of the established procedure for serving sentences being prepared or committed within correctional
facilities stipulated by Article 84 of the Penal Code of the Russian Federation does not correspond
to the federal law No. 144-FZ and constitutes a specific, unique objective of law enforcement intelligence
operations in penitentiary institutions. The task of ensuring personal safety of convicts,
correctional facility staff, and other persons under Article 84 of the Penal Code of the Russian Federation
is not fully covered by the objective of crime prevention. Furthermore, law enforcement intelligence
operations within correctional institutions have other significant distinctions characteristic
of custodial settings. Purpose: to identify key features of law enforcement intelligence operations
in correctional facilities, gaps and contradictions in its regulatory framework, and propose scientifically
grounded solutions based on the author’s research. Methods: theoretical research: induction,
deduction, analysis, synthesis, abstraction, concretization, analogy, comparison, identification,
generalization, extrapolation, formalization, and idealization; empirical research: observation,
description, questionnaires, interviews, document content analysis, and participant observation.
Results: the article systematically presents the author’s findings on shortcomings in current penal
legislation governing law enforcement intelligence operations in correctional facilities. Specifically,
it demonstrates that the tasks of law enforcement intelligence operations in correctional facilities
exceed the scope of the federal law No. 144-FZ creating no legal basis for operational search measures
addressing these tasks. Law enforcement intelligence operations in penitentiary institutions
combine operational search measures with regime enforcement, educational, and other activities
unified by a common objective. There is a legislative gap regarding authorization procedures for
operational search measures involving the items prohibited or restricted in custodial settings. Results
of law enforcement intelligence operations cannot be used to impose disciplinary liability on
convicts. Conclusion: through comprehensive analysis of these shortcomings, the author proposes
an amendment to replace Article 84 of the Penal Code of the Russian Federation.
Keywords: law enforcement intelligence operations; penal system; correctional facilities; operational search measures; legislation
upravleniya MVD Rossii = Proceedings of Management Academy of the Ministry of the Interior of Russia, 2017, no. 4 (44),
pp. 19–25. (In Russ.).
2. Zheleznyak N.S. Voprosy aktualizatsii Federal’nogo zakona “Ob operativno-rozysknoi deyatel’nosti”: monografiya [Issues
of updating the federal law “On law enforcement intelligence operations”: monograph]. Krasnoyarsk, 2019. 332 p.
3. Ozhegov S.I., Shvedova N.Yu. Tolkovyi slovar’ russkogo yazyka: 80,000 slov i frazeologicheskikh vyrazhenii [Explanatory
dictionary of the Russian language: 80,000 words and phraseological expressions]. Moscow, 2010. 938 p.
4. Larin A.M. Protection of human and civil rights and freedoms in criminal proceedings. In: Konstitutsiya Rossiiskoi Federatsii
i sovershenstvovanie mekhanizmov zashchity prav cheloveka: sbornik statei [The Constitution of the Russian Federation
and the improvement of human rights protection mechanisms: collection of articles]. Moscow, 1994. Pp. 57–74. (In Russ.).
5. Bazhanov S.A., Goryainov K.K., Isichenko A.P. Operativno-rozysknaya deyatel’nost’ v ugolovno-ispolnitel’noi sisteme:
rasshirennyi kommentarii k stat’e 84 UIK RF [Law enforcement intelligence operations in the penal system: extended commentary
on Article 84 of the Penal Code of the Russian Federation]. Moscow, 2011.
6. Redkov S.K. Features of ensuring personal safety. Na puti k grazhdanskomu obshchestvu = On the Way to Civil Society,
2025, no. 2 (58), pp. 128–131. (In Russ.).
7. Guk E.P. On the concept of personal security. Vestnik Penzenskogo gosudarstvennogo universiteta = Bulletin of Penza
State University, 2016, no. 4 (16), pp. 40–42. (In Russ.).
8. Pakanich S.I. Theoretical–legal study of the concept of the right condemned on a personal security in the conditions of
imprisonment. Vestnik Kuzbasskogo institute = Bulletin of the Kuzbass Institute, 2011, no. 5 (8), pp. 96–102. (In Russ.).
9. Teoriya operativno-rozysknoi deyatel’nosti: ucheb. [Theory of law enforcement intelligence operations: textbook]. Ed. by
Goryainov K.K., Ovchinskii V.S. Moscow, 2021. 762 p.
10. Kommentarii k Federal’nomu zakonu “Ob operativno-rozysknoi deyatel’nosti”. S prilozheniem reshenii Konstitutsionnogo
Suda Rossiiskoi Federatsii i obzorov praktiki Evropeiskogo Suda po pravam cheloveka [Commentary to the federal
law “On law enforcement intelligence operations”. With the application of decisions of the Constitutional Court of the Russian
Federation and reviews of the practice of the European Court of Human Rights]. Ed. by Ovchinskii V.S. Moscow, 2020. 576 p.
11. Chechetin A.E. Federal Law “On Operational Search Activities” in decisions of the constitutional Court of the Russian
Federation. Trudy Akademii upravleniya MVD Rossii = Proceedings of the Academy of Management of the Ministry of Internal
Affairs of Russia, 2020, no. 3 (55), pp. 65–76. (In Russ.).
12. Chechetin A.E., Shatokhin I.D., Shmidt A.A. Operativno-rozysknaya deyatel’nost’ v resheniyakh Konstitutsionnogo
Suda Rossiiskoi Federatsii: nauchno-prakticheskoe posobie [Law enforcement intelligence operations in the decisions of
the Constitutional Court of the Russian Federation: scientific and practical guide]. Barnaul, 2022. 136 p.
13. Galakhov S.S., Galakhova A.V., Bersanov Sh.R. The legal basis of operational investigative activities in the field of crime
prevention: constitutional and criminal law source. Nauchnyi portal MVD Rossii = Scientific Portal of the Ministry of Internal
Affairs of Russia, 2009, no. 1 (5), pp. 67–74. (In Russ.).
14. Agarkov A.V. Osushchestvlenie operativno-rozysknykh meropriyatii v ugolovno-ispolnitel’noi sisteme: teoretiko-pravovye
i prikladnye problem: dis. ... d-ra yurid. nauk [Implementation of operational investigative measures in the penal
system: theoretical, legal and applied problems: Doctor of Sciences (Law) dissertation]. Moscow, 2024.
15. Atmazhitov V.M., Bobrov V.G. O zakonodatel’nom regulirovanii operativno-rozysknoi deyatel’nosti: nauchnyi doklad
[On the legislative regulation of governing law enforcement intelligence operations: scientific report]. Moscow, 2003. 24 p.
16. Operativno-rozysknoi slovar’ [Operational search dictionary]. Comp. by A.Yu. Shumilov. Moscow, 2008. 175 p.
17. Sharov V.I. Tasks and forms (directions) of operational investigative activities. Vestnik Belgorodskogo yuridicheskogo
instituta MVD Rossii imeni I.D. Putilina = Bulletin of the Belgorod Law Institute of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Russia
named after I.D. Putilin, 2022, no. 1, pp. 37–41. (In Russ.).
18. Shakhmatov A.V., Karl A.M. On the issue of legislative regulation of the list of operational investigative measures in the
Russian Federation and the Republic of Kazakhstan. Vestnik Sibirskogo yuridicheskogo instituta MVD Rossii = Vestnik of
Siberian Law Institute of the MIA of Russia, 2019, no. 2 (35), pp. 97–102. (In Russ.).
19. Shumilov A.Yu. Operativno-razysknoi slovar’ [Operational-investigative dictionary]. Moscow, 2018. 216 p.
20. Kratkaya kharakteristika ugolovno-ispolnitel’noi sistemy Rossiiskoi Federatsii [Brief description of the penal system of
the Russian Federation]. Available at: https://fsin.gov.ru/structure/inspector/iao/statistika/Kratkaya%20har-ka%20UIS/
(In Russ.). (Accessed August 8, 2025).
