A person on trial in Romania for terrorist propaganda after allegedly promoting materials for an organization operating in the Middle East has been finally sentenced to four years and 11 months in prison, DIICOT officials said.

“By the decision of 28.02.2024 of the Supreme Court of Cassation and Justice, the Criminal Section accepted the appeal filed by the Prosecutor’s Office at the Supreme Court of Cassation and Justice – Office for the Investigation of Organized Crime and Terrorism – Territorial Service of Craiova against the verdict in the criminal proceedings of October 18, 2023, handed down by the Court of Appeal Craiova, who sentenced the accused to a sentence of 4 years and 11 months of imprisonment, while in custody, for the crime of popularizing messages through propaganda committed by any means, publicly, with the intention of inciting the commission of a terrorist act, regardless of whether the message directly supports terrorism, whether or not relevant crimes have been committed, and repeated access to terrorist propaganda material via a computer. systems or other means of electronic communication, as well as the possession of such materials for the purpose of appropriating a terrorist ideology as part of the radicalization process,” DIICOT said on Thursday, as quoted by News.ro.

Prosecutors of the Office for the Investigation of Organized Crime and Terrorism added that the verdict of 4 years and 11 months of imprisonment handed down by the judges of the Supreme Court of Cassation was upheld.

Criminal punishment was also canceled in the part “in terms of the application of additional punishments in case of recidivism, additional punishment in the form of a ban on exercising the right to be elected to state authorities or to other public positions, to hold a position that involves the exercise of state powers and the right to leave the territory of Romania, during 4 years, 3 months and 21 days, after the execution or recognition of the execution of a sentence in the form of deprivation of liberty and the prohibition to exercise the right to own, carry and use any category of weapons for 3 years after serving the sentence in the form of deprivation of liberty or recognition of its execution.”

The decision is final.

In the fall of 2022, the man was detained by DIICOT for terrorist propaganda, and in April 2023, the prosecutor’s office sent him to court for allegedly systematically promoting materials dedicated to a terrorist organization operating in the Middle East.

“In the case, it was stated that the defendant, at a late stage of the (self-)radicalization process, systematically accessed and promoted through computer systems terrorist propaganda materials typical of a terrorist organization operating in the Middle East. The materials accessed/distributed by the defendants featured combat scenes and training of members of this organization, as well as images of fighters of the terrorist organization,” DIICOT said at the time.

In addition, through accounts opened on social media platforms/messaging applications, the defendant promoted the symbols and activities of a terrorist organization operating in the Middle East, as well as its ideology.

According to the prosecutor’s office, the defendant edited terrorist propaganda materials, including by adding identifying marks, assuming the resumption/continuation of criminal activity only 6 days after the conviction with a suspended sentence under supervision for the commission of the crime. similar crimes.