Dmitryi Sonchyk

Former prisoner

Date of birth: 26 October 1975

Date of detention: 28 June 2021

Charges indicted:

  • Art. 364 of the Criminal Code — Violence or threat of violence against an employee of the internal affairs bodies
  • Art. 369 of the Criminal Code — Insulting a government official

Sentence: 3 years

Penalty: imprisonment in a general-security penal colony

Date of release: 23 March 2024

Judge: Dzmitryi Karsiuk

Prosecutor: Artsiom Tsviatkou

Groups: Cultural workers

Notes: Health issues

Dzmitry Sonchyk was sentenced under Art. 364 and Art. 369 of the Criminal Code to 5 years of imprisonment in a penal colony for insults and threats to four police officers in comments in a Telegram channel in 2020 and 2021. The comments were written under the influence of emotions after watching videos of beatings and detentions, and were thus triggered by the illegal actions of police officers. In court, Sonchyk stressed that he was not going to implement his threats. The content of the comments is unknown, as they were examined by the court in a closed session.

Addresses of prisons:

What should I know and how to help?

✉️ Write a letter. Make a scan of your letter or postcard and share it online

🤝 Please use the Russian (or Belarusian) name of the prison

💡 Foreign-language messages may be blocked, so attach a translation (e.g. translate.google.com)

💡 A big guide about helping Belarusian political prisoners from abroad

💡 More tips here

Support “Viasna”