On Wednesday evening, it became known that the district court in Tromsø acquitted drone defendant Andrey Yakunin. The Russian was accused of flying a drone in Svalbard this summer. According to the EU’s sanctions against Russia, Russians are not allowed to fly aircraft in Norway. But the district court in Tromsø believes that this does not apply to small drones, and Yakunin was allowed to go free. At the same time, the Russian Maxim is in prison in Western Norway. Just two weeks ago he was sentenced to prison for 90 days. Lawyer John Christan Elden believes that Maxim’s sentence must be overturned. Photo: Julianne Bråten Mossing / news The reason? He was Russian and had flown a drone in Norway, just like Yakunin. Drone defendant Andrey Yakunin acquitted in the district court: – A strong and clear sentence – The other sentences overturned A total of four Russians have stood trial for illegal drone flying in three different district courts in Norway this autumn. Two of them have been sentenced to prison. One is acquitted. The fourth has not yet received his sentence. John Christian Elden is the defense attorney for Yakunin, who was acquitted. He also believes that the others must be allowed to go free. – The other sentences must be annulled as they are based on a misunderstanding. It is not a criminal offense for Russians to fly recreational drones in Norway, Elden said yesterday when the sentence for his client was ready. Elden was very satisfied with the district court’s decision to acquit the Russian Yakunin. Photo: Pål Hansen / news Disagree with Elden State Attorney Marit Formo has represented the state in the two trials where Maxim and Vitalij Rustanovitch were sentenced to prison. She disagrees with Elden. – Here there are three district courts that have reached two different results. But a judgment from one district court does not override a judgment from another, says Formo. Nevertheless, she is aware that there may be changes on the matter until Yakunin ends up in the Supreme Court. – If the Supreme Court comes to the same result as the district court in Tromsø, we must of course consider the previous judgments from other places in the country, she says. If it quickly ends up in the Supreme Court, the judges must interpret the law in all such cases, and sometimes its scope can be unclear. Then it can easily happen that different courts arrive at different results, says professor of jurisprudence at the University of Bergen, Jørn Jacobsen. – What is special about this case is that it has a background in the EU’s sanctions rules and the Norwegian regulations must therefore be interpreted against that background. That makes it even more complicated than with normal statutory interpretation, says Jacobsen. He believes that Yakunin’s case will soon end up in the Supreme Court. – If the Supreme Court agrees with the district court’s interpretation, it must clearly have an impact on the cases that have already been decided, she says. State Attorney Marit Formo says they will reassess the other drone cases if the Supreme Court comes to the same assessment as Nord-Troms and Senja District Court. Photo: Julianne Bråten Mossing / news Drone sightings of Russians can be released The defender of Maxim, who is in prison in Vestland, has not answered news’s questions. Yesterday the deadline for appealing the judgment from the Hordaland District Court expired, and the 34-year-old must serve a total of 90 days in prison. The appeal deadline for convicted Vitaly Aleksandrovich Rustanovich has not yet expired. He has been sentenced to 120 days in prison, but his defense attorney wrote in an e-mail to news that he expects the client to be released today or tomorrow. – The decision from Nord-Troms is thorough, and considers all relevant aspects of the legal issues raised by the case in an exhaustive manner, and concludes where both law and common sense lie, writes Jens Bernhard Herstad.
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Russian Maxim must serve time in prison for drone flying, while Andrey Yakunin is acquitted of the same – news Vestland
