Prosecutor asks for conditional sentence for Lyudmila Bogatenkova

In the Stavropol Territory, public prosecutor has asked the Court to sentence Lyudmila Bogatenkova to 2.5 years of conditional imprisonment. The woman is the head of the Stavropol Committee of Soldiers' Mothers "Mothers from Kuma River Area", and she is accused of fraud. Advocates of the human rights defender ask the court to acquit their client.

The "Caucasian Knot" has reported that the investigation into the case against 74-year-old Lyudmila Bogatenkova was launched in October 2014. Bogatenkova was accused of committing a fraud at providing legal services to the militaries who had taken part in counterterrorist operations (CTOs) in Northern Caucasus. Two criminal cases have been opened against Bogatenkova. One of them claims that Bogatenkova allegedly borrowed under an oral agreement 100,000 roubles, and then began hiding and denying the loan. The other case is based on statements of two former Bogatenkova's clients that she had misled them and stole their money (the fee for the provision of legal services). The human rights defender pleads not guilty and associates the prosecution with her professional activities.

On June 3, the Budyonnovsk City Court held the court session devoted to the debates of the parties. The public prosecutor asked the Court to sentence Lyudmila Bogatenkova to 2.5 years of conditional imprisonment with a probation period of three years. The advocates of the human rights defender ask the Court to acquit their client in all episodes for absence of criminal acts, the RAPSI (Russian Agency of Legal and Judicial Information) reports with reference to defendant's advocate Andrei Sabinin.

Prior to the debates held on June 3, the Court questioned the defendant, who pleaded not guilty, the "Vedomosti" reports with reference to Andrei Sabinin. The verdict is expected to be announced at the next court session scheduled for June 18.

Full text of the article is available on the Russian page of 24/7 Internet agency ‘Caucasian Knot’.