Court sentences Alexander Lapshin to three years of imprisonment (+video)
The Baku Court has found blogger Alexander Lapshin guilty of illegally crossing the Azerbaijani border and sentenced him to three years of imprisonment in a common-security penal colony.
Mr Lapshin is a citizen of the Russian Federation, Ukraine and Israel. Azerbaijan accuses him of open appeals against the state and illegal border crossing.
The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that on July 19, in his final speech voiced at the Baku Court, Alexander Lapshin repented that he went to Nagorno-Karabakh and thereby brought suffering to residents of the region. The defence requested the Court to complete acquit the defendant.
Today, the Baku Court has found recognized Alexander Lapshin guilty under Article 318.2 of the Criminal Code of Azerbaijan (illegal crossing of the Azerbaijani border). Meanwhile, the Court has withdrawn the charge under Article 281.2 of the Criminal Code (open appeals against the state), the "Caucasian Knot" correspondent reports.
Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.
Source: CK correspondent