Romanian court hands ex-jailer 20 years for 103 prisoners’ deaths

A Romanian court has sentenced Ion Ficior, 87, to 20 years in prison for the deaths of 103 political prisoners who perished while he was commander of the Periprava labor camp from 1958 to 1963.

A Romanian court has sentenced a former prison commander Ion Ficior to 20 years in prison for the deaths of 103 political prisoners while he was commander of a communist-era labour camp.

This file photo taken on October 24, 2013 in Bucharest, Romania, shows Ioan Ficior, the commander of a Communist-era labour camp (C) leaving the building of the General Romanian Prosecution. (AFP file)

The Bucharest court on Wednesday handed the sentence to Ion Ficior, 87, who was commander at the Periprava labour camp from 1958 to 1963. He has 10 days to appeal.

Former detainees accused Ficior of beatings, a lack of food and medicine, and unheated cells. He denies wrongdoing and says he was merely following orders.

Last month, in the first case of its kind in Romania, a court upheld a 20-year sentence for Alexandru Visinescu, 90, for the abuse and deaths of prisoners while he was commander at the Ramnicu Sarat prison from 1956 to 1963.