The sentence against Rostov judges was upheld

The appellate court rejected the appeals against the sentences of former Rostov Regional Court Chair Elena Zolotareva, her deputy, and two others convicted in a multi-million ruble bribery case.

As reported by "Caucasian Knot," on December 22, 2025, a court in Krasnodar sentenced former Rostov Regional Court Chair Elena Zolotareva to 15 years in prison and a fine of 170 million rubles, and her deputy Tatyana Yurova to 13 years in prison and a fine of 120 million rubles. Georgy Bondarenko, the former head of the Zheleznodorozhny District Court of Rostov-on-Don, was sentenced to six years in prison and a fine of 4 million rubles, while Andrei Roshchevsky, the former head of the Rostov Region Judicial Department, was sentenced to eight years in prison and a fine of 50 million rubles.

The panel of the Krasnodar Regional Court considered the appeals against the sentence of Elena Zolotareva, Tatyana Yurova, Andrei Roshchevsky, and Georgy Bondarenko, the United Press Service of the Courts of Krasnodar Krai reported today on its Telegram channel.

Elena Zolotareva withdrew from the trial and was represented by a lawyer. The remaining defendants participated in the hearing via videoconference.

"The panel of judges, having reviewed the criminal case materials on appeal, found no grounds for changing the verdict or mitigating the sentence. The district court's verdict was deemed lawful and fair. The appeals were dismissed. The verdict has entered into legal force," the publication states.

As a reminder, in September 2023, the fifth defendant in this case, Albert Romanov, a representative of the head of Chechnya in the Kaliningrad region, was taken into custody. Investigators believe he was an intermediary in the transfer of bribes to Elena Zolotareva. However, in November 2025, the court granted a motion to suspend proceedings in his case due to the signing of a contract with the Ministry of Defense and his transfer to the SVO zone.

The criminal prosecution of Rostov judges will not lead to a mass review of the sentences they handed down, but those convicted can challenge them in the Qualification Collegium of Judges, lawyers previously interviewed by the "Caucasian Knot" indicated.