On September 29, 2021, Vitali was detained in a criminal case initiated over online comments made after the deaths of KGB officer Dmitry Fedosyuk and IT specialist Andrei Zeltser in Minsk. The reason was his comment under a video about these events.
In September 2022, Vitali was found guilty in a criminal case initiated under the articles "Insulting a representative of the authorities", "Inciting hatred or discord" and "Discrediting the Republic of Belarus" and sentenced to imprisonment in a penal colony and a fine.
Released in September 2022, after fully serving the sentence imposed by the court.
