Russian Courts Convicting Record Numbers for Treason, Espionage, and Crimes by Military Personnel, ‘Important Stories’ Says

Paul Goble

            Staunton, Oct. 18 – The Supreme Court of the Russian Federation has released data on convictions during the first six months of 2024. They show that courts there sentenced record numbers of people for treason, espionage, and crimes committed by military personnel, the Important Stories portal says.

            In the first half of this year, according to the portal’s journalists, “52 people were convicted of treason, 3.5 times more than in the same period a year earlier and more than have been convicted in any whole year since 2015” (istories.media/tanews/2024/10/18/gosizmenniki-shpioni-terroristi/).

            Perhaps more significantly, the court figures show that during the first half of 2024, Russian courts found 6,000 Russian soldiers guilty of various crimes, three times more than in the same period in 2023 and 7.5 times more than for that period in the years preceding Putin’s expanded invasion of Ukraine.

            The crimes for which Russian servicemen were convicted are increasingly serious and the percentage being sentenced to prison is now 4.5 times greater than was the case in pre-war years (istories.media/en/news/2024/10/15/russian-soldiers-have-become-more-likely-to-receive-real-sentences-as-punishment/).

            Russian courts also sentenced more Russian civilians for terrorism and extremism during the first half of 2024. According to Important Stories, 366 were sentenced for terrorism; and 340 were convicted of extremism, both up by double digits from 2023 and even more when compared with earlier years.