Russians in Angola have handed out prison sentences for espionage and terrorism

Two Angolans, sports journalist Amor Carlos Tomé and political activist Francisco Oliveira, have also been charged with the same charges for their alleged involvement in Russian-related influence, which they both deny.

Tomé received a two-year suspended sentence and Oliveira was acquitted.

Prosecutors appealed the case immediately after the verdict, which was read after 23:00 on Tuesday.

Tomé is expected to be held in custody pending the outcome of the appeal.

The BBC contacted the Russian embassy in Angola for comment but had not received a response at the time of going to press.

Elizeu Nguiniti, a lawyer representing Ratchin and Lakshtanov, told the BBC he would not comment on the decision.

After the verdict was handed down, he told the court that he did not agree with the verdict, which found his clients guilty of four of the 11 counts of organized crime, espionage, terrorism and money laundering – but said he accepted the court’s decision.

According to the Angolan news site Novo Jornal, the Russians told the court during the previous hearing that they had private meetings with political officials of the opposition parties MPLA and Unita, but denied that these meetings were related to any illegal activity.

It reported that the court rejected the defense’s request to call a number of those politicians as witnesses, ruling that their testimony was “not necessary” to establish the facts of the case.

Prosecutors allege that the defendants were involved in planning deadly riots in Angola in 2025.

They allege that the Russians are paying local journalists and experts more than $24,000 (£18,000) to spread pro-Russian and anti-government content aimed at provoking political change in Angola.

They also cited documents related to the project, notes and photos related to the 2025 protests that were found on the defendants’ devices, as well as alleged contacts with Angolan political officials.

Many Angolan activists strongly disagree with prosecutors’ assertion that the protests were not spontaneous.

Novo Jornal previously reported that Lakshtanov told the court during the trial that he had lived and worked in Angola for almost four decades and that his long academic career was incompatible with participation in terrorist organizations.

Previously, Ratchin had explained to the court that he was a businessman who came to Angola to establish a Russian cultural center and that the payments he paid to various people were compensation for the work he did, reported Novo Jornal.

He reportedly said he was surprised by his arrest in August 2025 and the subsequent charges.

The initial trial of the case, which began in March, was contentious.

During the preliminary hearing, the prosecutor refused to read the indictment aloud to the court. He pointed out that the defendants were already aware of the charges against them and therefore it is not necessary for them to study legally.

The lawyer objected. They said that since this case is public, those who will attend the trial including journalists must be able to hear and understand the allegations.

However, the prosecutor insisted that reading the indictment was optional and refused to do so.

The case itself was criticized even before the trial began.

Defense attorneys have consistently disputed their content, saying they often rely on speculation rather than physical evidence.

The BBC previously identified a number of misspellings and glaring errors in the document, but did not receive clarification from prosecutors about this.

Additional reporting by Ilya Barabanov and the BBC Russian Investigations team