Russia convicts 19 people over Moscow concert hall attack that killed 149

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A Moscow court docket has convicted 19 people in reference to the lethal 2024 live performance corridor assault that claimed 149 lives and injured over 600.

The March 22 rampage at Crocus Metropolis Corridor, one of many capital’s most devastating assaults in years, noticed 4 gunmen open hearth on concert-goers earlier than setting the venue ablaze. A faction of the Islamic State group claimed duty for the atrocity.

All 19 defendants obtained substantial jail phrases following the decision. Fifteen had been sentenced to life imprisonment, one was given 22 and a half years, and three others had been handed 19 years and 11 months every.

The trial started in August 2025 in a navy court docket, as is customary for terrorism expenses, and passed off behind closed doorways, with the authorities citing safety considerations.

President Vladimir Putin and different Russian officers have claimed, with out presenting proof, that Ukraine had a task within the assault. Kyiv has strongly denied any involvement.

The Investigative Committee, Russia’s high legal investigation company, has mentioned that the assault had been “deliberate and carried out within the pursuits of the present management of Ukraine with a view to destabilize political state of affairs in our nation.” It additionally famous the 4 suspected gunmen tried to flee to Ukraine afterward.

The 4, all recognized as residents of Tajikistan, had been arrested hours after the assault and later appeared in a Moscow court docket with indicators of being severely overwhelmed.

These tried alongside them included three males who offered the suspected gunmen a automotive, a person they rented an house from, and 10 others accused of terrorist ties, in line with impartial Russian information website Mediazona.