Three teenage sisters who knifed to death their 'rapist' father are to be charged with murder in a high-profile case, sparking an outcry from Russian lawyers and human rights activists.
Two out of the three, Krestina and Angelina Khachaturyan, could be jailed for between eight and 20 years even though official investigation experts testified that they were repeatedly tortured, sexually abused and raped by their father.
The youngest sister, Maria, 17, was found not to understand her actions when she was part of an alleged 'group' conspiracy stab their 'controlling paedophile father' Mikhail Khachaturyan, 57, through the heart with his own hunting knife.
As a result Maria will not face jail whatever the verdict.
Mikhail Khachaturyan (left) was stabbed to death in Moscow by his three daughters (Angelina, pictured right) last year, and to the dismay of psychiatric experts and defence lawyers all three will be stand trial for murder
Evidence has emerged that Mikhail raped Krestina, 20, (left) and slashed Maria, 17, (right) with a knife
In July last year they girls attacked their father with a hunting knife, he was stabbed through the heart and died in their Moscow apartment
Lawyers had pressed for the murder allegations to be dropped against all the sisters or mitigated by recategorising the case as causing death by 'self defence'.
The three - aged 19, 18 and 17 when he was killed - were earlier released from custody on a judge's order amid signs that the criminal investigation in the high profile case saw them as victims of sustained longterm abuse by their 'bullying mafia boss father'.
Now the decision to go ahead with a full-scale murder trial has dismayed their lawyers and human rights campaigners in Russia.
The move comes despite criminal, psychiatric and medical experts recommending to the Russian Investigative Committee that murder charges should be dropped, say newspaper reports.
Their lawyers describe the sisters as the 'real victims', claiming the father was a tyrant who used 'brutal violence' against his daughters.
Official expert opinion in the investigation had backed the sisters' claims that he raped Krestina and Angelina and engaged in other sexual violence when they were underage, reported Moskovsky Komsomolets newspaper citing legal sources.
Three lawyers representing the sisters have filed an appeal against the 'unfounded' charging decision.
Pictures emerged showing injuries the girls sustained. Left is Angelina with blood running down her face, while a bruise on one of the girls' jaws is seen right
Angelina (pictured in court) and her siblings don't deny attacking their father, but their lawyers maintain a murder charge is unjust
