Russian National Hailing Christchurch Terrorist Attack Gets 30-Month Prison Sentence - FSB

Russian National Hailing Christchurch Terrorist Attack Gets 30-Month Prison Sentence - FSB

A man in the Siberian city of Omsk has been sentenced to two years and six months for publicly expressing his approval of last year's terrorist attack in New Zealand, the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) said on Wednesday

OMSK (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 29th January, 2020) A man in the Siberian city of Omsk has been sentenced to two years and six months for publicly expressing his approval of last year's terrorist attack in New Zealand, the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) said on Wednesday.

According to the FSB, the 47-years-old Omsk resident, Dmitry Pavelchuk, praised mass killings on social media. He was charged under two articles of Russia's criminal code � making public calls for terrorism and justifying terrorism online. The charges presuppose up to seven years in prison.

"He was sentenced to 2 years 6 months in a penal colony and is prohibited from engaging in activities related to the placement of appeals to the public and other materials for 2 years 6 months ... on the internet," FSB told Sputnik.

Pavelchuk pleaded guilty and thus received a shorter sentence. He was taken into custody in the courtroom.

On March 15, New Zealand was rocked by two mass shootings at Al Noor Mosque and the Linwood Islamic Center in the central city of Christchurch. The tragedy left 51 people dead and approximately 50 others injured. The Australian attacker, Brenton Tarrant, 28, live-streamed the massacre on Facebook, and the video subsequently spread on other digital platforms.