The occupation “court” in Crimea sentenced a 22-year-old resident of Kerch for alleged “treason”

The occupation “prosecutor’s office” of Crimea announced another verdict in a politically motivated case. The so-called “Supreme Court of the Republic of Crimea” sentenced a 22-year-old resident of Kerch to 14 years and 1 month of imprisonment on charges of “treason” under Article 275 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation.

According to Russian law enforcement agencies, in January 2024, the young man allegedly “gathered information” about the locations of Russian Defense Ministry units in Kerch and passed it on to a chat room which, according to the occupiers, “is used by the Ukrainian security service and the Main Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defense.”

In addition to a long prison term in a strict regime colony, he has been sentenced to 1 year and 6 months of restricted freedom and a fine of 100,000 rubles.

The Crimean Tatar Resource Center notes that the Russian Federation continues to fabricate cases of “treason,” “espionage,” and “sabotage” to create an atmosphere of fear in the temporarily occupied territories.

Of particular concern is the fact that the latest victim of repression is a 22-year-old Ukrainian who has been completely deprived of his right to a fair trial. Cases involving “data transfer” are based solely on materials provided by the FSB and cannot be independently verified. Ukrainian lawyers and human rights defenders have no access to such trials.

Russia consistently uses the charge of “treason” as a tool for the political persecution of anyone suspected of disloyalty to the occupation regime.

Russia consistently uses the charge of “treason” as a tool for the political persecution of anyone suspected of disloyalty to the occupation regime.