Dzmitryi Ivanou was charged under Article 369 of the Criminal Code ('Contempt of a public official') because Mikalai Baranouski, a policeman from Žodzina, felt offended by Ivanou's comment on social networks.

Ivanou is an entrepreneur and a taxi driver. He participated in the 2020 protests in Čerykaŭ, Mahilioŭ region. For that, he was detained several times, fined, and sentenced to administrative arrest.

In a video published by pro-government channels, Ivanov also said that he had been arrested not only for his comments on social networks but also for video filming military vehicles and equipment.

On November 1, 2022, the Čerykaŭ District Court considered the case. Judge Alena Tsykunova found Dzmitryi Ivanou guilty and sentenced him to 18 months of freedom restriction under home confinement.

Ivanou was released in the courtroom. He had spent a month and a half behind bars: he was arrested on September 22, 2022. On the day of the verdict, a son was born to Ivanou.

At the trial, Ivanou admitted his guilt and apologized to the policeman. He paid 1,000 Belarusian rubles (approx. $ 343) as compensation for moral damage even before the trial.

However, in March 2023, the judicial panel for criminal cases of the Mahilioŭ Regional Court upheld the appeal filed by the Čerykaŭ district prosecutor and changed the verdict. Ivanov was sentenced to a more severe punishment—18 months of imprisonment in a general-security penal colony and 100 base fines (3,700 Belarusian rubles, approx. $ 1,268).