The Kalininsky District Court sentenced St. Petersburg political scientist Evgeny Bestuzhev to five years and three months of probation in a case of military «fakes», reports Sotavision* correspondent from the courtroom. He was also prohibited from posting publications and appeals on the internet for four years and six months. Bestuzhev was released in the courtroom under a travel ban.
As reported by the press service of the St. Petersburg courts, «the court significantly reduced the volume of the charges, finding him guilty of publicly spreading «under the guise of reliable information of one message».
The prosecution requested eight years in a penal colony for Bestuzhev. The reason was anti-war posts on «VKontakte» and «interviews with representatives of Ukrainian YouTube channels».
Lawyer Sergey Podolsky asked the court to acquit Bestuzhev or impose a punishment not related to imprisonment. The political scientist was diagnosed with a severe heart condition, which is also a basis for exemption from serving the sentence. Podolsky noted that some posts were published by Bestuzhev before the article on spreading «fakes» about the Russian army appeared in the Criminal Code and came into force.
The criminal case against Bestuzhev was initiated in November 2022, all the records he was charged with were made in February-March of the same year. His apartment was searched, and he was detained as a suspect. The next day he was taken into custody. During his time in the detention center, the political scientist suffered several heart attacks.
In his final statement, Bestuzhev said that he dedicated his life to the development of democracy and freedom of speech: «Anything else is incompatible with my life». «I realized that the country in which I was born and raised is no longer with me», he stated, adding that he does not deny posting the posts, but does not consider the published information «deliberately false».
Residents of St. Petersburg, as well as representatives of European diplomatic missions, including Germany, the consulates of Norway, Germany, and France, came to support the publicist in court.
* Recognized in Russia as a «foreign agent» and «undesirable» organization.
Photo: Sotavision