The court sentenced the so-called "military commissar" of Crimea to 11 years in prison in absentia

On the charges of the Prosecutor's Office of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol, the court sentenced the so-called "military commissar" of Crimea to 11 years in prison in absentia — the Mission of the President of Ukraine in ARC.

The so-called "commissar" was found guilty of violating the laws and customs of war, as he forced the civilian population of the occupied Crimea to serve in the Russian Armed Forces.

The convict is a Russian citizen and has held the position of the so-called "military commissar of the Simferopol district and the city of Alushta" since 2018. 

On the instructions of the Russian leadership, the convict directly developed plans and organised five conscription campaigns for Crimean residents. 

It is the first court sentence in Ukraine for such a crime.

Russia began conducting conscription campaigns in the temporarily occupied Crimea in 2015. According to rough estimates, about 39,000 Crimean residents have already been conscripted into the Russian Armed Forces.