The Prionezhsky District Court of Karelia sent 37-year-old Maxim Bochkarev and 38-year-old Igor Sofonov to jail on charges of murder, according to the website of the republican department of the UK.
Bochkarev and Sofonov were detained the day before in the village of Derevyannoye, Prionezhsky District, where, while extinguishing a fire in two wooden houses, the bodies of five men and one woman were found «with bodily injuries that testify to the criminal nature of death» (point «a» part 2 of article 105 of the Criminal Code).
The Interior Ministry clarified that we are talking about stab wounds. According to the preliminary version, the reason for the murder was «a long-standing conflict on domestic grounds.» The police claim that the men were drunk during the arrest.
When Sofonov was brought into the courtroom today, the Daily Karelia correspondent asked him if he participated in the invasion of Ukraine, to which the man nodded several times .
Sofonov wrote “about participation in the SVO” on several of his pages on VKontakte, Karelia News found out. One of his avatars features the Storm Squad logo. In addition, he posted photos in military uniform with a machine gun, as well as from the hospital. The publication claims that Sofonov returned from Ukraine this spring.
At the same time, local residents told Daily Karelia that Sofonov fought as part of the Wagner PMC. At the hearing, the newspaper writes, he claimed that he was wounded in the war and emphasized his belonging to the military, for example, he answered the questions of the judge “That's right.”
Sofonov and Bochkarev deny guilt in the murder of fellow villagers. Bochkarev's lawyer, whose name is not named by Daily Karelia, said that his client was beaten by the police.
The Investigative Committee emphasizes that both defendants «were repeatedly prosecuted, including for serious crimes.» Karelia News will add that, judging by the photos from social networks, Sofonov and Bochkarev previously served their sentences in the same colony.