Elena Nikolaevna Sherko

Maria was convicted of "participating in group actions that grossly violate public order" in a criminal case opened after a protest that took place on September 13, 2020, in Brest. At that time, the participants were singing and dancing in circles, and a water cannon was used against them. According to the prosecution, the action disrupted the operation of public transport.

Kirill was convicted of "participating in group actions that grossly violate public order" in a criminal case opened after a protest that took place in Brest on September 13, 2020. At that time, the participants were singing and dancing in circles, and a water cannon was used against them. According to the prosecution, the action disrupted the operation of public transport.

Before he began serving his sentence, he left Belarus.

In December 2024, it became known that a court hearing in absentia was held regarding Kirill to replace the restriction of freedom with imprisonment in a penal colony.

Since 2020, Elena has been subjected to systematic politically motivated persecution: she has been detained and arrested 17 times under administrative law and fined a total of 173 basic units. Her home has been searched repeatedly.

In May 2021, Elena was convicted of "participating in group actions grossly violating public order" in a criminal case opened following a protest on September 13, 2020, in Brest, where participants were singing songs and dancing in circles when a water cannon was used against them. According to the prosecution, the protest disrupted public transportation. She was sentenced to restricted freedom without being sent to a correctional facility.

In September of that year, Elena was convicted again for "insulting Lukashenko." The combined sentence amounted to three years of house arrest.

In January 2022, she was arrested for "violating a sentence" and sentenced to 15 days of administrative arrest. However, she was never released—she was transferred to a pretrial detention center as part of a new criminal case opened for slandering Lukashenko and discrediting the Republic of Belarus. In June, she was sentenced to imprisonment and a large fine.

In April 2023, Elena was convicted again under the article "malicious disobedience of the demands of the prison administration." This article is often applied to prisoners who refuse to cooperate with the administration, for fictitious violations.

It is known that Elena is constantly subjected to physical and psychological pressure. She is regularly placed in solitary confinement and isolation cells, deprived of almost all packages, phone calls, and visits, and her grocery allowance has been reduced from three basic units to one.

In February 2025, Polina Sharendo-Panasyuk reported that Elena had been placed back in the punishment cell : "After several weeks in solitary confinement, she was transferred to the punishment cell. There's a 99% chance they'll trumped up Article 411 against her again."

On December 13, 2025, she was released after another visit to Minsk by US President Donald Trump's special representative, John Cole, and taken to Ukraine.

Danila was detained in a criminal case opened after a protest that took place on September 13, 2020 in Brest, where people sang and danced in circles, and a water cannon was used against them. He was convicted of "participation in group actions that grossly violate public order." According to the prosecution, the downtime of the trolleybus and bus depots caused damage in the amount of about 660 Belarusian rubles.

He was released on October 23, 2021, having fully served his sentence, and deported to the Russian Federation.