Astakhov Asks for Justice in the Case of Vanya Skorobogatov's Murder

Pavel Astakhov, authorized representative under the President of the Russian Federation for Children’s Rights, appealed to U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton asking for justice in the case of Vanya Skorobogatov. According to the ombudsman, last Friday the court handed down a very mild sentence to his foster parents.

The Court of York, Pennsylvania, found Nanette and Michael Craver guilty of justifiable homicide of an adopted Russian boy, Vanya Skorobogatov, and sentenced them to imprisonment for a term of 16 months to four years.

This means that the real length of their stay in prison will depend on their behavior and other factors, and will be at least 16 months and no more than four years. This norm is provided by the state law.

“I sent a message to U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton. I think she must take Vanya’s case to a higher court and achieve justice,” wrote Astakhov on Friday on his Twitter.

In the ombudsman’s opinion, the sentence delivered to the Craver couple is too mild, so the Pennsylvania District Attorney’s Office should demand more severe punishment.

The ombudsman wrote in his microblog that he appealed to the U.S. Attorney General, Eric Holder. According to the Russian human rights activist, the U.S. Attorney’s Office must investigate the unfoundedly mild sentence.

Seven-year old Nathaniel Craver (Vanya Skorobogatov), from Chelyabinsk Oblast, died on August 24, 2009 in an American hospital from a traumatic brain injury. The child’s death was the result of multiple wounds and beatings, which can be qualified as torture, the Attorney’s Office claimed. There were about 80 injures on the child’s body.