Georgian Azovstal defender 'sentenced to life imprisonment' in occupied Donetsk - media
Kyiv • UNN
A Georgian citizen who fought for Ukraine was "sentenced by a court" in Russian-occupied Donetsk to life in prison for allegedly killing Russian soldiers.
In occupied Donetsk, a Georgian citizen Mamuka Gatsareli, who fought on the side of Ukraine and was captured, was "sentenced to life imprisonment," UNN reports citing News of Georgia.
Details
Gatsarelia, 22, grew up in Zugdidi in a family of refugees from Abkhazia. As a volunteer, he traveled to Ukraine shortly after the start of Russia's large-scale invasion. Gatsarelia was taken prisoner by Russia on May 20, 2022, after his unit disobeyed an order from the President of Ukraine to leave the Azovstal steel plant in Mariupol, which had been under siege for several weeks.
On February 20, the so-called court of the self-proclaimed 'Donetsk people's republic' found Gatsarelia 'guilty' of killing three Russian soldiers and wounding one. It is alleged that he opened fire on them with an assault rifle while in an apartment in a multi-storey building. Russian media reported that the incident occurred on April 1, 2022, in a house on Tsybulko Street in Mariupol.
"Mamuk Gatsareliy was found guilty under Article 317 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (attempted murder of a serviceman with the aim of obstructing the lawful activities of the said person to ensure public safety) and Part 3 of Article 359 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation (participation of a mercenary in an armed conflict)... Taking into account the position of the state prosecutor, the court sentenced Gatsarelia to life imprisonment," the Russian Prosecutor General's Office said in a telegram.
According to the agency, Gatsarelia will serve her sentence in a special regime penal colony.
The soldier's mother, Dali Chkheidze, told the Georgian service of Radio Liberty that she had spoken to her son on the phone a few days before the trial. He asked her not to worry and assured her that he was being treated "normally.
The family says that they have previously sought help from both the Ukrainian and Georgian authorities.
"We have been waiting for the verdict and now we will disturb them. We will also call Moscow... We appealed to Ukraine, and Ukraine told us that this is not our citizen, and we cannot help. In Georgia, we appealed to the Red Cross and the Public Defender, we called the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and were told that it would be considered and we would be told the answer, but so far nothing," Chkheidze said.
The Georgian authorities have not yet commented on Gatsarelia.
