The defendant in the “Moscow case” Andrei Barshai was given a suspended sentence and released in the courtroom

The Meshchansky District Court of Moscow sentenced Andrei Barshai, a 21-year-old student involved in the “Moscow case, ” Mediazona reports. He was accused of using violence against a National Guard employee (Part 1 of Article 318 of the Criminal Code).

The court considered it possible to impose a sentence not related to actual deprivation of liberty. The head of the human rights group Agora, Pavel Chikov, said that Barshai was being released in the courtroom. The court sentenced him to three years of suspended imprisonment.

At a meeting on February 18, a representative of the prosecutor's office asked Barshai for a sentence of three and a half years in prison. The victim, National Guardsman Alexander Kozlov, said that he had no complaints against the defendant: “I would like to limit myself to a suspended sentence.” Barshai admitted the fact of the push, but refused to admit guilt.

According to investigators, at a rally on July 27, 2019 in Moscow, Barshai pushed National Guardsman Alexander Kozlov in the back, causing him physical pain. Andrei was arrested on October 16.