Crimean judge who persecuted Ukrainians gets 13 years in prison

For the first time, a judge from occupied Crimea has been sentenced in Ukraine for violating the right of Ukrainian citizens to a fair trial. A former judge of the Russian-controlled Kyiv District Court of Simferopol was sentenced to 13 years in prison for violating the laws and customs of war.

This was reported by the Prosecutor's Office of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea and the city of Sevastopol. The agency emphasized that this is the first verdict in Ukraine that directly recognizes the use of the occupation "judicial" system against the civilian population as a war crime.

According to the prosecutor's office, the convict made the decision to arrest and detain the Deputy Chairman of the Mejlis of the Crimean Tatar people Akhtem Chiygoz in 2015 for participating in rallies in support of the territorial integrity of Ukraine. It also sentenced Ukrainian activist Oleksandr Kostenko.

The court found that these decisions were made using Russian legislation in the occupied territory and grossly violated international humanitarian law, in particular the Geneva Conventions, which guarantee civilians the right to a fair trial even in times of war.

According to media reports, this is Viktor Mozhalyansky, who is currently working as a judge in the occupied part of Kherson region. A Ukrainian court has previously sentenced him to 13 years in prison for treason.

The prosecutor's office emphasized that the verdict is a signal to all collaborators and accomplices of the occupiers about the inevitability of responsibility for war crimes.

Recently, the Prosecutor's Office of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea launched the first criminal proceedings on crimes against humanity on the occupied peninsula following a statement by human rights activists.

In the first quarter of 2026, human rights defenders recorded 7 searches in the temporarily occupied Crimea, including 2 searches of Crimean Tatars. In general, human rights defenders document large-scale human rights violations in the occupied Crimea. According to the Crimean Tatar Resource Center (CTRC), in 2025, they recorded hundreds of detentions, searches and cases of unfair court decisions, which indicate a systemic violation of basic freedoms for Crimeans, especially the Crimean Tatar people.

Андрій Колісніченко