MOSCOW, September 21 (RAPSI) – Three defendants convicted in a criminal case over cruel murders of animals have filed appeals against the sentence, a spokesperson of the Industrialny District Court in Khabarovsk told RAPSI on Thursday.

An appeal was also lodged by a victim in the case, the court’s representative added. The hearing date has not been scheduled yet.

Two young girls and one young man were found guilty of cruelty to animals, robbery, violation of religious feelings, and incitement of hatred. One of the girls was sentenced to 4 years and 3 months, another one to 3 years and 10 days in prison, and the young man received 3 years in behind bars.

The court found that in the summer of 2016 two girls were cruelly maiming and murdering animals and published images of their actions online. Investigators alleged that they abused about 15 animals and birds. More crimes were revealed later.

In 2015 and 2016, one of the girls published images and texts violating religious feelings of people of faith on her VKontakte page. From March to October 2016, she and her accomplice published video containing scenes of abasement of human dignity. According to investigators, in July 2016, the girls committed an assault related to robbery against a Khabarovsk resident.