The “Chernomorsky District Court” of Crimea sentenced Nariman Mezhmedinov to 8 years in prison on charges of participating in the activities of the Noman Chelebidzhikhan battalion of Crimean Tatar volunteers. This was reported by the press service of the Russian FSB in Crimea, without giving the name and surname of the convict.
“The court found the Crimean resident guilty of the alleged crime and sentenced him to 8 years in prison for participating in the activities of an illegal armed group operating on the territory of a foreign state in a manner contrary to the interests of Russia,” Russian media quotes the FSB report.
It is also noted that the man was detained in February this year.
Earlier it was reported that on February 4, 2020, a 55-year-old resident of the Chernomorsky region Nariman Mezhmedinov was arrested by the decision of the “Kievsky District Court”. It became known that he was detained only on February 17.
According to the website of the “court”, the verdict on Mezhmedinov on July 20, 2020 was passed by “judge” Irina Erokhina. The Crimean resident was charged under Part 2 of Article 208 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (Participation on the territory of a foreign state in an armed group not envisaged by the law of that state, in a manner contrary to the interests of the Russian Federation).
The reason for the persecution of Crimeans for their involvement in the Noman Chelebidzhikhan battalion of Crimean Tatar volunteers, according to the Crimean occupation authorities, is membership in an organization that aims to de-occupy the peninsula. At the same time, this organization does not take part in an armed conflict or other hostilities, therefore, according to experts of the CHRG, the persecution for involvement in the Noman Chelebidzhikhan battalion can be considered as politically motivated.
