A judge from occupied Crimea was sentenced to 11 years for treason

Nadiya Sobeshchanska, an occupation judge from Crimea who betrayed her oath and sided with the Russian occupiers,has been sentenced to 11 years in prison.She was found guilty of treason.

This is stated in the verdict of the Darnytskyi District Court of Kyiv, which was handed down in absentia.

The court found that Sobeshchanska, a citizen of Ukraine and a judge of the Kerch City Court, continued to work in an illegally established Russian court after the occupation of Crimea. From March to December 2014, she administered justice on the peninsula in accordance with Russian law.

In December 2014, the Russian dictator appointed her as a judge of the Kerch City Court of the Republic of Crimea. In May 2016, she was appointed a judge of the Saki District Court of Crimea. Thus, she continued to work within the occupation’s judicial system.

The court also established that in December 2014 and January 2015, Sobeshchanska issued a series of court rulings based on Russian legislation. Specifically, these included three civil cases and one case involving an administrative offense.

Through these actions, she facilitated the transition of Crimea’s judicial system to Russian law, ensured the functioning of illegally established judicial bodies, and reinforced the occupation of the peninsula.

The court classified her actions as providing assistance to a foreign state and its representatives in carrying out subversive activities against Ukraine under Part 1 of Article 111 of the Criminal Code of Ukraine.

Prior to the occupation, Sobeshchanska was a Ukrainian judge. In 2011, she was appointed a judge of the Kerch City Court of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea.

As early as 2014, the Prosecutor General’s Office of Ukraine had taken action against her for violating her judicial oath, and in December 2015, the High Council of Justice filed a motion for her dismissal. In January 2016, the President of Ukraine dismissed her from office for violating her judicial oath.

The court proceedings took place without Sobeshchanska’s participation. She is currently in the temporarily occupied territory of Crimea and did not appear in court. However, the court established that she was aware of the criminal proceedings—in particular, she received messages via Telegram—after which she deleted them and blocked a court employee and her defense attorney.

The prosecutor requested a 13-year prison sentence with confiscation of property. The court sentenced her to 11 years in prison. The operative part of the verdict does not mention the confiscation of property.
 

Ірина Глухова