A court in the DPR sentenced a Georgian mercenary to 14 years in prison in absentia.

The Supreme Court of the Donetsk People's Republic (DPR) has issued a verdict in absentia in a criminal case against David Khositashvili, a 36-year-old Georgian citizen. The DPR prosecutor's office informed about this on June 18.

"The court found that in the period from February to March 2022, Khositashvili arrived at the permanent deployment point of the Georgian National Legion. He underwent military training on the territory of the training bases, <...> was provided with personal firearms, ammunition, uniforms and special equipment," the report says.

Subsequently, the man took part in the armed conflict on the side of the Armed Forces of Ukraine (AFU) against Russian military personnel until August 2023. For this, he received a reward, the amount of which amounted to over 2.4 million rubles.

Khositashvili was found guilty in accordance with Part 3 of Article 359 of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation ("Mercenary activity"). The court sentenced him in absentia to 14 years in prison to serve his sentence in a high-security penal colony.

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Earlier, on June 17, a court sentenced a Belgian mercenary in absentia for participating in the conflict on the side of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. It is specified that he joined the ranks of the Ukrainian army and opposed the Russian military. He was sentenced to 14 years in a high-security penal colony.