Moscow court sentences man who attacked gay men near Kursky railway station to 9 years
MOSCOW. June 9 (Interfax) - The Basmanny District Court of Moscow has sentenced a man who attacked two homosexual men, killing one of them, to nine years in a high-security penal colony.
"In accordance with the court judgement, Anton Berezhnoi has been sentenced to imprisonment for nine years in high-security penal colony," the court press service told Interfax on Wednesday.
Berezhnoi was found guilty of battery and deliberately inflicting grievous bodily harm which led to involuntary manslaughter.
The court handed down the judgement on the basis of the verdict of the jury, which found Berezhnoi guilty as charged, but deserving of leniency.
The incident on which the case is based happened outside the Kursky railway station in Moscow in the summer of 2019. Berezhnoi attacked Roman Yedalov and Yevgeny Yefimov with a knife. As a result, Yedalov died on the spot, and Yefimov sustained a minor injury.
Berezhnoi was initially charged with murder and assault. During the first consideration of the case, the jury acquitted him of murder, and the court sentenced him to custodial restraint for assault. However, the Moscow City Court overturned the sentenced and forwarded the case for a retrial.
The acquittal and the judgement caused outrage in the Russian LGBT community.
During the second consideration of the case, Berezhnoi, who had signed an undertaking not to leave the country, fled during a hearing, was declared wanted, and then was detained and arrested.