Political prisoner Paliyenka sentenced to 'home arrest' and released in courtroom
An activist of the anarchist movement, Zmitser Paliyenka has been sentenced at a Minsk city court. The judge found him guilty of particularly vicious hooliganism and sentenced to 3 years of “home arrest,” the website of the Human Rights Center “Viasna” reports.
The activist was tried under Part 3 of Article 339 of the Criminal Code (particularly malignant hooliganism) for spraying pepper gas. Paliyenka was sentenced to three years of “home arrest” instead of sending him to a correctional institution for this act. A year was deducted from his three-year sentence due to amnesty.
Initially, investigators opened four criminal cases against Paliyenka at once. The activist slit his wrist during the first court session in protest. Later it turned out that the prosecutor’s office had dropped three charges and the court had decided to hold an open trial.
During the case hearing, the prosecutor asked that Paliyenka be sentenced to six years’ imprisonment. There were also found many contradictions in the case.
