Convicted cider producers appeal fatal poisoning sentences
The criminal case concerning a mass poisoning by substandard cider that claimed 50 lives has entered a new stage. The convicted producers of the drink have filed an appeal, and now the Samara Regional Court will review the verdict issued against them.
Recall the essence of the case. In September 2025, the Krasnoglinsky District Court of Samara found Anar Guseynov and Artem Airapetyan guilty of providing services that did not meet safety requirements. According to the investigation, in 2023 they organized a makeshift cider production, using industrial alcohol to increase its strength.
As established by the prosecution, the alcohol they purchased turned out to be methanol, stolen from the warehouses of the regional Main Directorate of the Ministry of Internal Affairs (GU MVD). This poison ended up in 48,000 liters of the drink, sold under the brands «Mister Sidr» and «Leto Sidr» in seven regions of Russia. The consequences were 50 fatalities and 66 severe poisonings.
The court of first instance sentenced Guseynov to 9 years and Airapetyan to 8 years in a general regime colony. They were also ordered to pay millions of rubles (equivalent to tens of thousands of USD at current rates) in compensation for moral damages to the victims and their families.
According to the Samara Regional Court, the convicted men and their lawyers disagreed with the verdict and filed appellate complaints. Airapetyan, for example, insists that his role was misinterpreted and he did not directly participate in production and sales.
The Samara Regional Court scheduled the consideration of the appeals for February 17, 2026 (the hearing begins at 10:00). Now the higher instance must review the legality and validity of one of the most high-profile verdicts in the region in recent years.
