Ruslan Kuzmich sentenced to three years in jail for 'promoting extremist activity'
On January 27, a Navahrudak district court sentenced 38-year-old Ruslan Kuzmich to three years in jail. He was found guilty of “promoting extremist activity”. This is the first verdict under the new article 364-4 of the Criminal Code.
The decision on the punishment was made by Maksim Filatau.
Ruslan Kuzmich was detained on 6 October in his own house in Navahrudak. According to the investigation, it was done after a comment in a Telegram channel supporting extremist activities and the use of weapons. A criminal case was opened against the man under a new article, which was added to the Criminal Code this year: 361-4 or “Facilitation of extremist activity.”
At the trial, the prosecutor said that by writing the comment “OK, it’s time to get guns. LONG LIVE BELARUS!” the accused “encouraged other citizens to violent unlawful actions, including the use of weapons.”
Ruslan Kuzmich was tried for “promoting extremist activity,” although at the time of writing the commentary the information products of the “Navahrudak for Life” channel were not yet recognized as extremist materials.
According to the human rights activists, during the preliminary investigation, Ruslan Kuzmich refused to testify.
Human rights activists say that this is the first political sentence under this article of which they are aware. The verdict has not acquired legal force and can be appealed within 10 days.
