A verdict on Ruslan Melnik’s case was passed in the Saint Petersburg Federal Court today. The assumed leader of Mad Crowd was found guilty of organization of the extremist grouping and incitement of national hatred and was sentenced to 3.5 years of imprisonment.
The investigation accused Mad Crowd of assaults on citizens of Armenia, China and other states, incitement of national hatred and racial humiliation. Ruslan Melnik was arrested in summer 2006.
Mad Crowd is supposed to be formed in 2002 as an alliance of football fans. Melnik himself was a member of other extremist organization titled Shults 88. Mad Crowd propagandized national and racist ideas against Jews, Caucasians, Asians and Africans. Majority of the gang members were found guilty and sentenced to various terms of imprisonment in 2005.
The prosecutor demanded to find Melnik guilty of organization of an extremist society targeted at national and racial hatred and sentence him for 4 years of imprisonment. Ruslan Melnik pleaded guilty of organization of the extremist grouping, reports ITAR-TASS.
