A Colombian citizen accused of “fake news” has had his arrest extended until June 26

The court extended the arrest until June 26 of Colombian citizen Alberto Enrique Giraldo Saray, accused of distributing “fakes” about the Russian army by an organized group for mercenary reasons (clauses “b” and “d”, part 2 of article 207.3 of the Criminal Code). SOTAvision writes about this.

It is noted that the trial in this case was closed due to a request from the defense: the lawyers stated that there were medical documents in the materials, the contents of which should not be disclosed to listeners.

Giraldo was detained in April. According to investigators, from March to April, he placed mobile devices in one of the Moscow shopping centers, from which “unidentified persons remotely sent mass mailings” with “fakes” about the actions of the Russian Army.

In December, the Prosecutor General's Office named two other defendants in the case: Ramirez Salazar and Briceño Mendoza. The security forces believe that they transferred funds in cryptocurrency from abroad to Giraldo, which were then used to cover expenses “related to the commission of the crime.”

Also, according to the Prosecutor General's Office, Mendoza, “receiving instructions from unidentified persons,” conveyed “instructions” to Giraldo and received “reports” from him. Investigators believe that the defendants in the case acted in the interests of the American organization Digital Humanity.

On April 11, the court took Giraldo into custody, despite the defense's request for house arrest. On December 5, the Investigative Committee announced the completion of the investigation against him. At the end of December, the case was transferred to the Golovinsky District Court of Moscow. Mendoza and Salazar are wanted and preliminary investigations against them are ongoing.

• According to Interfax, Giraldo was engaged in individual entrepreneurship in Russia, but in the fall of 2021 he stopped his activities by his own decision.
• Since February 24—the first day of the “special operation” in Ukraine—residents of Russian cities have been going out to anti-war rallies every day and talking about the tragedy online. Anti-war speeches and statements become grounds for criminal prosecution. At the moment, more than 400 people have become defendants in criminal cases initiated due to protest against the war with Ukraine. Read more about this in our guide .
• Article 207.3 (Public dissemination of knowingly false information about the use of the armed forces of the Russian Federation) was included in the Criminal Code in March 2022 - in this way the authorities responded to anti-war speeches and statements, as well as the dissemination of information about the war that does not come from official Russian sources. The maximum penalty under this article is 15 years in prison.