After 20 years on the run, he was detained thanks to his son, who reported his whereabouts to law enforcement.
The Supreme Court of Russia upheld the sentence of former high-ranking official from the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug, Yuri Chekin, convicted of organizing a triple murder, one of the victims being the regional prosecutor. According to reports from the courtroom, the appeal filed by the convicted and his defense was dismissed, and the arguments were deemed unsubstantiated.
Chekin, who had been on the international wanted list for over 20 years and was living under false documents in Khanty-Mansiysk, participated in the hearing via video link from the "Polar Owl" penal colony in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Okrug. His speech, instead of the promised 20 minutes, lasted over two hours, forcing the court to announce a technical break.
In his address, Chekin insisted on the complete fabrication of the case, claimed violations in the selection of jurors and the conduct of examinations, and asserted that foreign agents and former prosecutors were behind his persecution.
The panel of the Supreme Court, after reviewing the materials, found no grounds to grant the appeal. Thus, the sentence handed down by the jury in July 2024 came into legal force.
Previously, the jury unanimously found Chekin guilty of inciting the murder of the prosecutor of the Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug, Yuri Bederin, in 2000, as well as being involved in the killings of two local businessmen. The motive for the crimes, according to the investigation, was revenge and personal conflicts.
The court sentenced Chekin to life imprisonment and ordered him to pay 10 million rubles in compensation to the relatives of the victims.
Notably, Chekin was only detained in 2021 thanks to his son, who reported his whereabouts to law enforcement. In his speech at the Supreme Court, the convicted claimed that the weapon found during his arrest was planted on him by his son at the direction of security forces.
The perpetrators of the murders were convicted back in 2002 and have since fully served their sentences.
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