A Russian court has sentenced a 21-year-old man to life in prison for one of the country’s worst school shootings in recent times, Interfax reported THURSDAY.
Ilnaz Galyaviyev opened fire on students at his former high school in the city of Kazan, the capital of the central republic of Tatarstan, on May 11, 2021, killing seven students, two teachers and injuring 139 others.
Galyaviyev, 21, graduated from School No. 175, where the tragedy took place, six years ago and had been expelled from a local technical college for poor academic performance shortly before he committed shooting.
Tatarstan’s Supreme Court on Thursday found Galyaviyev guilty on five counts of murder, attempted murder, illegal production of explosives and illegal acquisition, storage and transportation of explosives.
Galyaviyev pleaded guilty to all five counts and prosecutors asked the court to sentence him to life imprisonment.
The Kazan tragedy was the 10th Russian school shooting in just seven years and has led to calls for a crackdown on gun ownership and tougher internet censorship amid growing gun violence.
There is no constitutional right to bear arms in Russia and aspiring gun owners are required to pass a psychological examination and complete a trial period of shotgun possession before being licensed. to buy a gun.