Before his arrest, Andrei lived and worked in Europe. He was arrested in January 2025 as part of a criminal case opened under a number of articles, including "insulting a government official" and "discrediting Belarus." In August of that year, he was convicted for comments he made on social media.
He was released on March 20, 2026, as part of a pardon following another visit to Minsk by US President Donald Trump's special representative, John Cole.
