Donbas-linked case: Infamous Russian propagandist’s nephew gets jail term in Germany
A Munich court has sentenced a nephew of notorious Kremlin mouthpiece Dmitry Kiselyov to two years and three months in prison for his training and getting ready to participate in the hostilities in eastern Ukraine.
Sergei Kiselyov, who has the citizenship of Germany, was accused of preparing a crime that posed a threat to national security, as well as in violation of the law on weapons possession, RTVi channel reports.
In August 2014, Kiselyov completed military training in a camp near St. Petersburg, investigators state. According to RTVi, the photos of him posing with other participants and receiving the Imperial Legion medal were included in the case papers. The man partially admitted his guilt.
A check into Mr Kiselyov’s activity started in 2015 after an anonymous report had been filed to the prosecutor’s office. However, it is the interview granted by his uncle that gave ground for opening a criminal case against him.
“There are volunteers from around the world, we showed them on TV. There, for example, my nephew fought. He lives in Germany, he has a German passport, but he went there to fight! In Horlivka, or somewhere else, I saw photos. I learned about it only when he had come back. He had been fighting from September to December. He was a platoon executive. I asked: “What did you go there, Sergei?” His name is Sergei Kiselyov, he is a son of my elder brother. He answers: “Because I am Russian,” Dmitry Kiselyov said in April, 2016 when answering journalists’ questions about the conflict in Ukraine.
Dmitry Kiselyov gained notoriety after he became an anchorman at Sunday’s news program on TV channel Rossiya 1. In his interpretation broadcasting news turns into shows of hatred. For his ‘loyalty’ he was promoted to the director of international information agency Russia Today.
