OAN Staff Addie Davis
1:36 PM – Thursday, March 12, 2026
A Russian court convicted 19 individuals on Thursday for their involvement in the 2024 Moscow concert hall attack that left 149 dead and hundreds more injured.
The defendants included four gunmen, all Tajikistan nationals, and 11 accomplices, sources report. Fifteen received life sentences, with the rest earning sentences ranging from 19-to-22 years.
The life sentences will be “separated between prison time and serving in a special regime penal colony.”
The attack, which has been described as the “worst terrorist attack in the country in two decades,” took place at the Crocus City Hall concert venue in the Russian capital. The Associated Press, the attackers opened fire on people waiting for a show and then set the building ablaze.
The trial, which commenced in August 2025, took place behind closed doors, the outlet noted.
Besides the gunmen, those tried included three men who sold the gunmen a car, in addition to a man they had rented an apartment from, as well as ten others accused of having terrorist connections, according to independent Russian news site Mediazona, per AP.
A regional faction of ISIS claimed responsibility for the attack. However, Russian officials reportedly laid blame on Ukraine for the attack.
“This inhuman crime was planned and carried out in the interests of the current leadership of Ukraine in order to destabilize the political situation in our country,” said Russia’s Investigative Committee previously in a statement. It also alleged that the four suspected gunmen had attempted to flee to Ukraine, according to AP.
The United States forcefully rejected the accusations at the time, with the denial articulated by Katherine Brucker, the U.S. Chargé d’Affaires, in an official statement.
“Contrary to public statements by President Putin and others who have sought to shift blame onto Ukraine, the United States, the United Kingdom, and any other entity that suits the Kremlin’s political narratives, it is abundantly clear that ISIS-K was solely responsible for the horrific terrorist attack in Moscow on the 22nd,” Brucker said.
She added that the United States had previously warned Russian authorities of a terrorist threat targeting large gatherings and concerts in Moscow, and had also issued a public advisory urging Americans to avoid such events.
According to Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, international rights groups condemned the recent legal proceedings, citing allegations of torture and the intimidation of defense counsel.
These concerns were underscored by media reports of the suspects appearing in court with visible signs of severe beating following their arrests.
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