Artsiom Sakovich
sentenced to four years in prison
Date of birth: 10 August 2001
Date of detention: 22 June 2021
Charges indicted:
Art. 342 of the Criminal Code — Organization and preparation of actions that grossly violate public order, or active participation in them
Art. 295-3 of the Criminal Code — Illegal actions in relation to objects which action is based on use of combustible substances
Part 1 of Article 13 and Article 293 of the Criminal Code — Preparation for mass riots
Sentence: 4 years
Penalty: imprisonment in a medium-security penal colony
Judge: Dzmitryi Karsiuk
Prosecutor: Tsimafei Nichyparuk
Prison: Penal colony No. 17
Artsiom Sakovich is a defendant in a criminal case opened to investigate "riots" in August 2020. He was detained on June 22, 2021.
On September 10, 2021, he was sentenced to four years in a penal colony by the Centraĺny District Court of Minsk under Part 1 of Art. 342 of the Criminal Code for “participation in group actions that grossly violate public order”, under Part 1 of Art. 13, Part 2 of Art. 293 for “preparation for participation in riots” and under Part 1 of Art. 13, Part 2 of Art. 295-3 of the Criminal Code for “preparation for illegal manufacture and carrying of substances, the damaging effect of which is based on the use of flammable fluids”. Sakovich was arrested, together with several other persons, on charges of preparing to make Molotov cocktails, while Sakovich’s participation in the actions and intention to transport and use these substances were not proven in court.
Sakovich was reportedly beaten during arrest.
