Ilia Belov, 23, and his sister Nadjedzha Belova, 20, were sentenced on Friday at Dundee Sheriff Court for their roles in an incident in Lochee in August 2025, which led to a widely shared video on social media.
Belov assaulted a 12-year-old girl and behaved in a “threatening or abusive manner” towards four girls aged between 12 and 14. He was sentenced to 18 months of supervision, 300 hours of unpaid work, and was placed on the sex offender register for 18 months. He had been found guilty following a trial earlier this year.
Belova pleaded guilty to one charge of assaulting a 13-year-old girl during the same incident and was sentenced to 180 hours of unpaid work.
Incident details and police response
The incident began when Belov made sexual remarks to a 12-year-old as she walked towards a bus stop with other girls. In an ensuing fracas, Belov pushed the 12-year-old, who told the court she hit her head on a metal handrail as she fell. After standing back up, she pulled out an axe and knife she said had been hidden in her waistband for five to 10 minutes before the incident. When police arrived minutes later, she said she dumped the weapons on a nearby roundabout, where they were later recovered.
The video of the girl brandishing the weapons was shared widely on social media, including by Elon Musk, who said the girl was trying to defend herself. Police Scotland said its initial response “did not fully reflect the situation”.
Sheriff’s remarks and sentencing
Sheriff Timothy Niven-Smith rejected Belov’s version of events, describing it as “neither credible nor reliable”. He said it was “inevitable” that something would happen when Belov chose to follow the girls, and that his actions were “intended to intimidate”. The sheriff also determined that Belov’s comments towards the youngest victim had a “significant sexual aspect” and were for “sexual gratification”.
Sheriff Niven-Smith said the offences for both siblings crossed the threshold for imprisonment, but considering their age, work history and lack of other previous or ongoing offences, he imposed an alternative sentence that “primarily considered rehabilitation”.
Impact on victims and defendants
The sheriff noted that footage Belov took of one of the victims holding weapons found its way onto the internet, and that Belov himself, or someone he sent the video to, must have uploaded it, making him the “author of his own misfortune in that regard”. He also said the victims have been affected by the footage, and noted that images have appeared on social media and in the public domain, despite child victims normally being granted anonymity.
Belov’s solicitor Larry Flynn told the court that his client had been impacted by the widespread attention the case gained. The court heard that Belov and Belova have found it hard to gain employment in Scotland since the case began, with Belova travelling to the Netherlands to find work picking fruit.
Speaking to reporters as he left the court building, Belov said he had “nothing to say” to the young victims “other than to wish everyone a good life”. He said he has lost “many things” as a result of the case, and added: “I will continue to be the man I was before – normal, happy, looking after his children.” When asked about the victims, he said: “You have to think about that, the girl was wearing weapons too. Can you talk about that?”
