NEO-NAZIS SENTENCED IN ST PETERSBURG MURDER CASE

UNCLAS MOSCOW 003863 SIPDIS SENSITIVE SIPDIS E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: PGOV PHUM RS SUBJECT: NEO-NAZIS SENTENCED IN ST PETERSBURG MURDER CASE ¶1. (SBU) Summary: On August 7, a St. Petersburg court sentenced seven defendants for their roles in the murder of anti-fascist activist Timur Kacharava and other crimes. Ringleader Andrey Shabalin was sentenced to 12 years in prison, three received two- and three-year sentences, and three were given suspended sentences. Human Rights watchers see this a positive step in the prosecution of hate crimes, but say that the government needs to do more to prevent these crimes by attacking the root causes of nationalist hatred. End Summary. ¶2. (SBU) On August 7, a St. Petersburg court sentenced seven defendants for their role in the November 2005 murder of anti-fascist activist Timur Kacharava and attempted murder of activist Maksim Zgibay. Consulate St. Petersburg reports that all seven were convicted of committing a hate crime in addition to convictions for murder and hooliganism. The court sentenced ringleader Andrey Shabalin to 12 years in prison (the prosecutor had asked for 14 years). One defendant received three years in prison, two received two-year sentences, and three received suspended sentences. The lighter sentences were given to the defendants who were minors at the time of the attack. Prominent Human Rights attorney Yuriy Schmidt, a colleague of the victims' lawyer, told us that the sentences were expected. He added that the sentences could have been longer if the investigators had done a better job preparing the case. According to news reports, the defendants intend to appeal their sentences to the Russian Supreme Court. ¶3. (SBU) Human Rights activists noted that the sentences demonstrated that prosecutors and the courts were serious about prosecuting hate crimes. Aleksandr Brod of the Moscow Bureau for Human Rights told us that the sentences were more severe than in similar past cases. Memorial's Grigoriy Shvedov told us that "a 12-year sentence is a very concrete and practical message in the fight against extremism." Mikhail Chlenov of the Eurasian Jewish Congress told us that the convictions reflected a welcome and visible effort by the government to lower the level of xenophobia in Russia. ¶4. (SBU) However, our Human Rights contacts added that the government needed to do more to attack the root causes of extremism than focus on convictions. "More education is needed, especially for teenagers, to prevent these crimes from happening," said Chlenov. Shvedov added that since the government will reach a limit in how severely it can sentence teenagers. Shvedov added that without greater efforts on education and prevention, tougher sentences would only act to slow the extremist problem, not shrink it. -------------- Comment -------------- ¶5. (SBU) We are encouraged that the court followed through on these charges with substantial sentences. These convictions and a similar conviction in June for the murder of a Congolese student are signs that law enforcement is increasingly serious about prosecuting hate crimes. RUSSELL