A court in southern Russia has sentenced 10 anti-lockdown protesters to up to six and a half years in jail, the Kommersant business daily has reported.
Over 2,000 protesters gathered in Vladikavkaz, the capital of the North Caucasus republic of North Ossetia, on April 20, 2020, to demand an end to the regional self-isolation orders as well as emergency financial support to compensate for job losses and the regional government’s resignation.
At least 17 security officers were injured in the clashes that erupted when authorities tried to disperse the unauthorized protest.
Kommersant on Monday reported that a court in the city of Rostov-on-Don found five of the protesters guilty of taking part in mass riots.
Late on Wednesday, the Rostov-on-Court court handed down five more guilty verdicts, sentencing five protesters to jail terms ranging from four years and nine months to 6 and a half years. Artur Dzhavadyan, who received the longest sentence so far, was also found guilty of using violence against a law enforcement officer, Kommersant reported.
Aslan Gasiyev and Zaza Tsaritov, who had pleaded guilty, were sentenced to five years in prison each. David Okruashvili and Artur Bugulov received five years and three months each. Magomed Kadyrov was sentenced to five and a half years behind bars.
The trial took place in the Rostov region some 700 kilometers north of North Ossetia at the prosecution’s request out of fears that the protesters would be able to pressure judges in their home region, according to Kommersant.
