In Belgorod, a court sentenced programmer Ilya Chubukov to six years and six months in prison on charges of possession of explosives (Article 222.1 of the Criminal Code), reports “Ashes. Belgorod".
He was also fined 50 thousand rubles on charges of vandalism for setting fire to an installation in the shape of the letter Z (Part 2 of Article 214 of the Criminal Code), for which he was initially detained.
Chubukov plans to appeal the verdict.
The case against the programmer became known in September 2023. Then he said that the explosives were planted on him during the search. He also said that the security forces took him to the forest in handcuffs and with a bag over his head. There he was tortured to make him confess. Chubukov was tortured with electric shock, beaten, they threatened to cut off his legs, and a gas burner was brought to his body, the programmer said. His “confession” was eventually recorded on camera.
At the same time, Chubukov said that during the search, security forces planted objects that looked like a grenade and a TNT block on him.
- After the start of the war in Ukraine, the Russian authorities began to react sharply to protest sentiments. The list of articles under which those who oppose the war are prosecuted is quite wide. Those involved in “anti-war cases” are often charged with hooliganism, vandalism, violence against government officials, and other violations. A significant element of pressure was also the articles introduced into the Criminal Code after the outbreak of hostilities - the spread of “fakes” about the Russian army and discrediting the armed forces.