On April 27, the Leningradsky District Court of Kaliningrad found 37-year-old Izhevsk resident Inna Karakulova and 38-year-old resident of the Sverdlovsk region Sergei Lopatnikov guilty under the article on desecration of a gravestone (clause "a" of Part 2 of Article 244 of the Criminal Code) due to a drunken prank at the Eternal Flame. The corresponding document was published on the court's website.
Lopatnikov was sentenced to one year of imprisonment in a penal colony, Karakulova to six months. The woman was given a deferment to serve her sentence until her child reached fourteen years of age.
The case against Karakulova and Lopatnikov was announced in February. According to the prosecution, which the court accepted, they drank alcohol on the territory of the Mass Grave, lit cigarettes from the Eternal Flame, burned carnations in it, and stole a basket of flowers from there before leaving. Lopatnikov also walked through the flames nine times.
The case was brought to court in April. The Investigative Committee emphasized that the defendants admitted their guilt and "actively contributed to the investigation."