A court in Moscow has sentenced a previously convicted Russian man to 29 years in a strict regime colony for corrupting minors and producing child pornography.
The Main Investigative Directorate of the Investigative Committee of Russia for the city of Moscow disclosed details of the case to Russian news outlet Lenta.ru on Wednesday. Law enforcement authorities said the defendant targeted underage victims through social media networks and mobile phone correspondence while held in a pre-trial detention center, continuing his actions after transfer to a correctional colony.
According to investigators, the convict persuaded the victims to engage in actions of a sexual nature, transmitted pornographic materials to them, and used the minors to manufacture illegal content. The court noted that the defendant possessed a prior criminal record for offences committed against the sexual inviolability of minors.
The investigation involved extensive evidentiary work before the trial commenced. Officers from the Investigative Committee interrogated multiple witnesses and victims while authorized specialists conducted necessary forensic examinations to confirm the charges.
Four criminal charges
The judges convicted the defendant under four distinct statutes of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation. He was found guilty under Article 132, which covers violent sexual actions, and Article 135, which penalizes depraved actions against children.
He also faced conviction under Article 242.1 for the manufacture and circulation of materials depicting minors in pornographic scenes, alongside Article 242.2, which prohibits using a minor for the purpose of producing pornographic items.
The judicial panel sentenced the man to 29 years in a strict regime penal colony, a term that accounts for his previously assigned punishment. Strict regime correctional colonies in the Russian penitentiary structure feature elevated security, restricted movement, and heightened inmate supervision, typically reserved for repeat offenders or those convicted of major felonies.
The Investigative Committee functions as the principal federal body in Russia charged with conducting criminal investigations into serious crimes against the state and individuals. Russian law enforces severe penalties for repeated sexual offences against minors, with cumulative sentencing rules applying when new crimes are committed during incarceration.
