Czech high court upholds sentences for Ukrainiane counterfeiters

It sent Ukrainian Vadym Karepetyan and Serb Dragoman Tosic to 12 years in prison, thus lowering the original 13-year sentence for Karepetyan.

In the remaining cases the court left the original sentences untouched. It returned some cases to the Brno court for a new hearing.

The Olomouc High Court started the appeals proceedings in the case of the gang members on Wednesday, with massive security precautions.

The defendants, who are allegedly high-ranking members of the "Luhansk brigade," one of the strongest Russian-speaking criminal gangs, were suspected of selling counterfeit money and of illegal arms possession and they faced up to 15 years in prison.

There were not only Ukrainians but also Czechs, one Serb and one Belarussian in the group that includes both men and women.

According to the state attorney, the gang tried to put counterfeit banknotes of U.S. dollars and euros into circulation.

Some of the defendants purchased counterfeit money and individual gang members then tried to change counterfeit bills at exchange points, in shops and bars or offered them for a further sale.

If they managed to sell all counterfeit banknotes they would cause the damage exceeding three million crowns, the court said today.

The Olomouc court today dealt with the appeals of eight out of the 13 charged gang members.

The sentences of two gang members given by the Brno court have taken effect and the lawyers of another three defendants failed to turn up for the hearing today and the court will deal with their cases in the near future.

($1=17.339 Czech crowns)

Autor: ČTK
www.ctk.cz