On November 27, 2025, the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don handed down life sentences to eight defendants in the case over the explosion on the Crimean Bridge on October 8, 2022. Those convicted included people linked to transporting the cargo and servicing the logistics chain.
According to investigators, that chain was used to deliver a truck carrying about 20 tons of hexogen, disguised as rolls of construction plastic film. The blast caused three spans of the bridge to collapse and killed five people.
The defense says the defendants did not know each other, did not try to flee, and were unaware of the explosives. Lawyers also claim that all eight underwent polygraph testing that, in their view, showed no intent, but that those materials later disappeared from the case file.
The defense also disputes the digital evidence. According to its account, identical political memes appeared on several defendants' phones after their arrests, and investigators used those files to support the allegation of terrorist intent.
The article notes that a terrorism charge requires proof of direct intent. It says that, in the defense's view, the 116 volumes of the case show only the defendants' connection to transporting the cargo, not to planning the blast itself.
A separate trial in absentia is also being investigated in connection with the attack, but its materials are not publicly available. The defense believes that case is where the actual organizers are being identified. The article concludes that eight more people have now effectively been added to the list of victims by being sent away for life.