IRKUTSK. Feb 26 (Interfax) - The Irkutsk Regional Court found 12 inmates of Angarsk Penitentiary No. 15 guilty of rioting and disorganizing penitentiary operations on Wednesday, the regional prosecution service said in a statement.
"The court sentenced the defendants to prison terms from 5.5 to 21 years to be served in high-security and maximum-security penitentiaries," the statement said.
Three convicts will serve the first three to five years in jail.
The defendants were found guilty of mass unrest and disorganization of penitentiary operations.
According to the regional investigative department of the Russian Investigative Committee, a group of inmates of Penitentiary No. 15 disobeyed lawful demands of penitentiary guards and committed violence against them in April 2020.
"Later on, the inmates started mass riots at the penitentiary, set fire to several industrial buildings, and inflicted sizable damage on the penitentiary," the statement said.
Eighteen persons, including penitentiary employees, were designated as aggrieved parties.
As reported, inmates of the disciplinary cell of Penitentiary No. 15 in the Irkutsk region caused disturbances and attacked an employee of the colony in the evening of April 9, 2020. The employee has been hospitalized.
Following the riot, a group of employees of the regional branch of the Federal Penitentiary Service immediately arrived at the penitentiary. Inmates ceased their unlawful activities following a conversation with the group and after providing an explanation for the incident.
The inmates started riots again and set fire to the penitentiary on April 10. The riot was suppressed later that day, and the fire was put out on the next day. According to the preliminary information, the fire spread onto about 30,000 square meters.
The body of a killed inmate was found in the rubble. He might have been killed by other inmates for possible collaboration with the penitentiary administration.