Prosecutors request sentences for suspects in controversial extremism case

The prosecution has asked for a variety of sentences for the suspects in the “Novoe Velichie” (New Greatness) case, ranging from four years probation to seven and a half years in prison on charges of organizing an illegal extremist group.

The Novoe Velichie Case

In 2018, ten activists from the so-called “Novoe Velichie” (New Greatness) movement were accused of organizing an illegal extremist group. Investigators believe they were plotting to “overthrow Russia’s constitutional order,” using leaflets and Telegram chat messages. The movement emerged from a group of like-minded individuals hanging out at the same McDonald’s. The suspects’ parents accuse the police of framing their children for crimes they didn’t commit, and sources have told reporters that an undercover police officer was embedded inside the organization. The New Greatness case was opened in March 2018, and the trial began in June 2019.

For the two women defendants in the case, Anna Pavlikvoa and Maria Dubovik, the prosecution requested four and six years probation, respectively. For suspects Dmitry Poletaev and Maxim Roshchin, prosecutors requested six and a half years probation.

The prosecution requested prison terms for the three other suspects in the case: seven and a half years in a prison colony for Ruslan Kostylenkov, six years for Vyacheslav Kryukov, and six and half years for Pyotr Karamzin.

The prosecution also requested additional punishment, in the form of restrictions on the suspects’ internet use, the legal news outlet Mediazona reports.