Riga court sentences woman to three years in prison for glorifying Russian war crimes on TikTok
Tatjana Masenko has been convicted to three years in prison for glorifying Russian armed forces' war crimes on TikTok. Her lawyer plans to appeal the judgment.
Latvian citizen convicted for glorifying war crimes on TikTok
Riga City Court on Tuesday sentenced Tatjana Masenko to three years in prison for glorifying war crimes committed by Russian armed forces against Ukraine. According to BNN, in addition to the custodial sentence, the defendant was also placed under two years' probation supervision.
The punishment requested by prosecutor Robert Urdziņš coincided with the sentence imposed by the court. Participants in the case can request the full court ruling within ten days of its pronouncement, and can appeal it within ten working days.
Masenko's defence lawyer Oskars Ondrups informed journalists that he will appeal the judgment, as he considers it disproportionate. Masenko herself expressed regret for the imposed sentence.
Prosecutor's and defence arguments
The prosecutor noted that the defendant did not deny publishing the videos and admitted that they were published from her TikTok account. He emphasised that the case established more than 20 publications, and moreover, there were more recordings of similar character than were included in the indictment.
The defence, in turn, argued that Masenko used TikTok thoughtlessly and irresponsibly, seeking public attention, rather than expressing support for Russian aggression or attempting to influence other people. Ondrups asked the court to acquit the defendant.
The prosecutor rejected the defence argument that the defendant did not understand the significance of her publications.
Masenko's final word
In her final statement, Masenko expressed regret for her actions, emphasising that the videos were not published with the intention to glorify war crimes or influence other people. She also stressed that she is a Latvian citizen, does not travel to Russia or Belarus, and does not wish her actions to create an impression of support for war crimes.
Masenko stated that she had already spent four months in detention and considers the sentence already served. According to her, the detention took place immediately after questioning at the State Security Service (VDD).
Case details
According to the indictment, between April and July 2024 Masenko published several videos on TikTok with comments in Russian. The videos were available to an unlimited audience and, in the prosecution's assessment, deliberately and publicly glorified and justified war crimes committed by Russian armed forces against Ukraine.
The prosecution previously stated that the maximum sentence for such a criminal offence is six years in prison and up to three years' probation supervision.
Source: BNN