Court hands down lenient sentence to SMO fighter from Vladikavkaz for murder

The court has sentenced Aslan Salamov, a participant in the special military operation (SMO) from Vladikavkaz, to 1.5 years in jail, finding him guilty of murdering his acquaintance.

According to the case materials, in November 2023, an acquaintance of Aslan Salamov, a military serviceman from Vladikavkaz, invited him to his home. According to Salamov, the acquaintance attacked him and began beating him up. Some witnesses claim to have heard screams and struggle noise, while other witnesses deny this. According to investigators, Salamov stabbed his acquaintance in the throat and then fled in a car, as he was being pursued by acquaintance's relatives, the website of the Southern District Military Court reports.

The Vladikavkaz Garrison Court has treated Salamov's participation in the SMO in Ukraine, his Zhukov medal, and a positive character reference from his command as mitigating circumstances and sentenced him to 1.5 years of imprisonment in a penal colony. The court found him guilty of murder committed in excess of self-defence.

The casualty's family has appealed against the sentence, demanding that it be toughened; however, the Southern District Military Court has upheld the sentence.

The "Caucasian Knot" has also reported that courts in Southern Russia have repeatedly handed down lenient sentences to militaries with account of their participation in the SMO. In particular, on October 15, 2023, the Makhachkala Military Court sentenced Musa Musaev, a military serviceman, to seven years of conditional imprisonment (probation) in a case of illegal arms trafficking.