Court in Sochi sentences six "black realtors" to long terms in prison

The Krasnodar Territorial Court has sentenced six members of the grouping of "black realtors" to long terms of imprisonment. The grouping, which included policemen and a notary, kidnapped and murdered needy and lonely Sochi residents in order to embezzle their homes.

The trial of the members of the grouping started in 2008. On August 25, 2009, the jury acquitted the defendants for "lack of offence elements in their actions." However, on July 7, 2010, the Supreme Court of the Russian Federation overturned the verdict as illegal and unjustified, and sent the case back to the territorial court for reconsideration. On April 19, 2011, the jury of the Krasnodar Territorial Court found the defendants guilty.

The court found that the members of the grouping managed to take possession of the flats of four citizens; two of them were killed, one disappeared, and one more was kidnapped. One more attempt to embezzle a flat failed, the RIA "Novosti" reports.

The court has sentenced the head of the grouping Gureev to 23 years, and members Voznyuk - to 15 years, Kostenkov - to 17 years, Ilyin - to 9 years, and Zabunyan and Patsekin - each to 6.5 years of high security penal colony.

A former Sochi notary Pinchuk was sentenced to three years of conditional imprisonment and was deprived of the right to engage in notary activities for the same period.

So far, no reaction of the convicts and their advocates to the verdict has been reported.