All persecuted

Evgeny was charged under 9 articles of the Criminal Code. The reason for this was comments in Telegram and sending 0.28 and 0.004 bitcoins to the administrators of Telegram channels.

In addition, from December 2019 to January 2020, he purchased particularly dangerous psychotropic substances, and on the territory of Russia (in the Bryansk region) he bought a firearm – a Makarov pistol (PM) and at least 46 cartridges for it.

The trial lasted from February 14 to June 2, almost four months.

Yevgeny partially admitted his guilt, explained that he did not agree with the results of the presidential elections in Belarus, and that is why he decided to act actively.

Artyom enjoys music and fishing, and is inquisitive and knowledgeable in many areas. He studies English and German. He always knew he would live in Germany. He loves Rammstein, has been listening to them since childhood, and knows many of their songs by heart.

He was arrested on January 12, 2022, in connection with a criminal case involving "group actions grossly violating public order," "illegal collection and dissemination of personal data," "calls for actions aimed at harming national security," and "aiding and abetting incitement of hatred."

In September 2022, he was found guilty of participating in two post-election protests in Minsk in 2020, as well as developing a barcode scanning program to boycott companies that supported the regime.

Alexander was arrested on August 22, 2021, near the dacha of V.O. Sukalo, Chairman of the Supreme Court of the Republic of Bashkortostan, for attempted arson. He was possibly provoked by a KGB officer.

In March 2022, Alexander was convicted of "act of terrorism" and sentenced to imprisonment in a maximum-security penal colony.

Sergei, an investigative journalist and editor of the Belarusian portal "Ezhednevnik" (ej.by), was detained on December 8, 2021, following a search and questioning by the Investigative Committee. He was charged with bribery and placed in pretrial detention. Sergei had previously been detained in connection with this case, from March 25 to April 4, 2020.

It later became known that he was also accused of “inciting hatred and discord” and “abuse of power or official authority.”

Human rights organizations assessed the prosecution as evidence of a political motive in the criminal prosecution of the journalist, aimed at forcing him to stop or change the nature of his activities in disseminating information about corruption.

According to Sergei's colleagues, the prosecution was motivated by his high-profile investigative journalism, primarily concerning large-scale corruption in the healthcare sector. Based on these findings, he reported on unprecedented kickbacks in the supply of expensive equipment, the purchase of an unregistered vaccine that was claimed to have been tested on Belarusian children, and the falsification of data on the spread of COVID-19 in Belarus. Moreover, according to him, these actions took place with the approval of the Ministry of Health.

In October 2023, Sergei was found guilty and sentenced to imprisonment in a penal colony.

Vitaly was arrested in November 2021 on charges of "participation in mass riots" and placed in pretrial detention.

In March 2022, he was found guilty of participating in a post-election protest that took place in August 2020 near the Riga shopping center in Minsk. According to the Ministry of Internal Affairs, he allegedly "along with other aggressive participants, committed vandalism and property destruction: breaking up paving slabs, erecting barricades, and blocking traffic."

Nikita was arrested in November 2021 in connection with a criminal case opened under the article "act of terrorism"—according to investigators, for disabling railway tracks. He was later finally charged under two articles of the Criminal Code: "participation in actions grossly violating public order" and "preparation for participation in mass riots."

In July 2022, Nikita was found guilty of calling for active participation in and participating in the 2020 post-election protests in Minsk, including incidents of "road blocking." Investigators also alleged that he received telescopic batons and stun guns from the administrators of the "OGSB" Telegram chat, as well as instructions for sabotaging the railway.

Sergei was detained in August 2021 as part of a criminal case initiated under the article “act of terrorism”.

According to the indictment, from July 2020 to January 2022, "an organized criminal group operated in Belarus, Turkey, Poland, Ukraine and other countries with the goal of committing extremist crimes. The group included radical individuals, including former and current military personnel, law enforcement officers, athletes and businessmen, who sought to seize power illegally." The case involves charges of attempted arson of the home of MP Oleg Gaidukevich in June 2021 and "organizing mass riots."

Sergei was convicted under several criminal articles to a long term of imprisonment and a fine, and he was also stripped of his military rank.

Alexey, a former military man, communications specialist and director of a company that installs and repairs electric garage doors and barriers, was arrested in September 2021 in a criminal case related to the "Busly Lyatsyats" initiative. Some of the charges involved damaging the car of a Borisov district judge. As a result, he was sentenced to a long prison term and a fine.

Alexey has three children, one of whom is a minor.

Igor was arrested in October 2021 in connection with a criminal case opened under several articles, including "violence or threat of violence against an official performing official duties or another person performing a public duty."

According to investigators, Igor sent emails to Lukashenko's official website containing threats of violence and posted insults against government officials, including law enforcement officers, and sent similar messages to employees of the Investigative Committee. He also participated in post-election protests in Minsk in 2020.

In June 2022, he was found guilty and sentenced to imprisonment in a penal colony. It is also known that the "victims" of the security forces have filed claims for compensation for moral damages.

Vitaly was found guilty in September 2021 of influencing a law enforcement officer to change the nature of his activities by threatening to destroy property for a comment he left in the "Borovki 97%" Telegram chat under a photo of Sergeant Major Sergei Balabanovich, and was sentenced to arrest.

In January 2024, pro-government Telegram channels reported Vitaly's re-arrest . In a "confessional video," he stood in front of the camera, handcuffed, and said that he "called for violence against riot police officers only out of emotion."

From August to October 2024, Vitaly faced several court hearings in a criminal case opened under charges of "defamation of Lukashenko," "participation in actions grossly violating public order," "organizing mass riots," "calls for sanctions," and "inciting hatred or enmity." The outcome is unknown.

Andrei, a former maintenance worker in the Ammonia-3 workshop at the Grodno Azot plant, was arrested in the fall of 2021 as part of a criminal case brought against plant employees who supported the strike and were part of the "Workers' Movement" initiative. On September 21, 2021, this initiative was designated an extremist organization, following which mass arrests of workers took place across the country.

In February 2023, Andrei was found guilty of slander, treason, and the creation of and participation in an extremist group and sentenced to imprisonment.

Anton, a volunteer for the Country for Life foundation and the Angel search squad, was detained on July 9, 2021, as part of a "KGB operation to purge radicals" and placed in pretrial detention on charges of financing the activities of an extremist group.

In October 2022, he was charged with "conspiracy to seize state power through unconstitutional means," and in November of that year, Anton was sentenced to imprisonment in a maximum-security penal colony.

Sergei, an assistant to the head of a Minsk organization, was arrested in September 2020 at his home for participating in a protest against presidential election fraud and violence against civilians that took place in Minsk on August 11, 2020. He was convicted of "participating in mass riots" and also on drug-related charges.

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On September 7, 2020, he was detained at his residence. According to the medical examination report, at the time of his arrest, he was in a state caused by the use of psychotropic substances; mephedrone was detected in his system. During a search of his apartment, law enforcement officers found a powdered substance. Investigators later concluded that Sikorsky also sold the same substance to a 46-year-old resident of Mogilev.

During the closing arguments, the state prosecutor requested the court to award Sikorsky:

• Under Part 1 of Article 328 of the Criminal Code – 2 years of imprisonment;
• Under Part 3 of Article 328 of the Criminal Code – 7 years' imprisonment and a fine of 300 basic units. By combining the penalties under the two parts of Article 328, the total sentence is 7 years' imprisonment;
• Under Part 2 of Article 293 of the Criminal Code – 5 years of imprisonment.

The final sentence is 9 years of imprisonment in a high-security penal colony and a fine of 300 basic units.

An activist of the "Country for Life" and a member of Svetlana Tikhanovskaya's team, Alexander has been repeatedly detained under political administrative articles. He was detained along with another activist, Oleg Boroznaya, who were known to have been under surveillance since the fall of 2020. Alexander was subsequently convicted on fabricated drug-related criminal charges.

Ruslan was arrested in January 2021 and convicted of making and distributing "hedgehogs" in front of a convoy of cars participating in a pro-government rally in the fall of 2020. He was also accused of attempting to damage railway tracks by connecting the rails with metal wire, which could have delayed the movement of trains.

Ruslan is into extreme sports and arboristry. He loves heights and gets a thrill from sitting on a roof or hugging treetops. In prison, he discovered his talent for drawing. In his personal life, he works with wood, grows potatoes, keeps pigs and loves horses.

Ruslan has a benign brain tumor, as well as severe back pain , due to which he sometimes could not get out of bed.