Estonian court partially rehabilitates hitman Imre Arakas, recognizing his 1970s crimes as a 'struggle against the Soviet regime'

Court reviews 1979 verdict

Estonia's Supreme Court has partially rehabilitated Imre Arakas, known as the hitman nicknamed the Butcher, recognizing part of his late-1970s crimes as a struggle against the 'Soviet occupation'. This is reported by Postimees citing the court ruling, as covered by Gazeta.Ru.

What exactly the court overturned

The motion to overturn the verdict of the Supreme Court of the Estonian SSR of October 26, 1979 was filed by Arakas's lawyer Sven Sillar. He asked that charges be dropped for episodes which, in his view, constituted a 'liberation struggle' due to the absence of an offense, and succeeded in having his request granted. In 1979, Arakas was sentenced to 15 years of deprivation of liberty with confiscation of property: three years in prison and 12 years in a strict-regime colony. Among the charges were an attempt to illegally leave the country by boat, thefts of motors and boats, the theft of weapons, and assaults. The Supreme Court rehabilitated Arakas for the episodes involving the theft of boats and motors to prepare an escape abroad, the acquisition and abduction of weapons, and the theft of equipment from a police car — the judge considered it proven that the goal was 'armed resistance to the Soviet regime.' At the same time, the verdict for stealing two umbrellas from a car remained in force: the court saw no connection between this episode and a 'liberation struggle.' In addition, €700 was recovered from the state in Arakas's favor to cover defense costs.

A second partial rehabilitation and the defense's arguments

In a written statement, Arakas claimed that he had engaged in the 'liberation struggle' together with Heiki Terras. This is not the first partial rehabilitation for the hitman: in December 2024 he was pardoned for the theft of a boat and the abduction of weapons. However, Terras was not relieved of responsibility for stealing tape recorders from the Tallinn Conservatory and stealing a car. Thus, over a year and a half, the courts have consistently recognized individual episodes of the 1979 verdict as politically motivated, while upholding those not connected with 'resistance to the regime'.

Who is Imre Arakas

Arakas became known as a hitman nicknamed the Butcher. In 2017 he was detained in Dublin on a contract from the Irish Kinahan cartel: he was promised €100,000 for the murder, but the job was never carried out.