Five participants in a rally against the «self-isolation regime» in Vladikavkaz received up to four years and 10 months in prison

The Pervomaisky District Court of Rostov-on-Don sentenced five participants of protests against the “self-isolation regime” in Vladikavkaz to real terms. This was reported by Interfax with reference to the joint press service of the courts of the Rostov region.

Erik Bestaev was assigned four years and 10 months in prison, Soslan Dzansokhov and Uruzmag Koniev — three years and 10 months in prison each, Sarmat and Taimuraz Kadiyevs — four years in prison each.

All were found guilty of participating in mass riots (Part 2 of Article 212 of the Criminal Code), Bestaev was also found guilty of illegal possession of weapons (Part 1 of Article 222 of the Criminal Code).

ArticleSvoboda Square. The people's gathering against the «self-isolation regime» in Vladikavkaz ended in a big criminal case

These are far from the first sentences against the defendants in the case of protests in Vladikavkaz. In total, the Investigative Committee opened a case against 20 participants in the rally, sentences began to be passed in July 2021.

In April 2020, more than one and a half thousand people took to Svoboda Square in Vladikavkaz, protesting against the “self-isolation regime”, demanding economic support, the resignation of the head of the region and the release of opera singer Vadim Cheldiev, who was detained in St. Petersburg. When the security forces tried to squeeze them out of the square, in response, several people threw stones at them.

Later, five criminal cases were brought against Cheldiev — on the distribution of fakes (Article 207.1 of the Criminal Code), an attack on an operative of the Center «E» ( Part 1 of Article 318 of the Criminal Code), calls to carry out extremist activities (Article 280 of the Criminal Code), organizing mass riots (Part 1 of Article 212 of the Criminal Code) and hooliganism by a group of persons by prior conspiracy or associated with resistance to a representative of the authorities (Part 3 of Article 33, Part 2 of Article 213 of the Criminal Code). The prosecutor asked him for 11 years in a strict regime colony.