A Russian municipal court sentenced environmental activists Suren Ghazaryan and Yevgeny Vetishko to a three-year suspended prison term. And the prosecution was demanding such sentence.    

They were found guilty of causing deliberate damage to the fence of the Black Sea Coast summer home of Governor Alexander Tkachev of the Krasnodar Region. 

The defense intends to appeal the verdict, attorney Marina Dubrovina told RFE/RL. 

They say Ghazaryan’s and Vetishko’s criminal persecution is conditioned on their civil activeness.