Ihar Shumilau
sentenced to 4 1/2 years of imprisonment
Date of birth: 21 July 1986
Date of detention: 23 February 2023
Charges indicted:
Art. 369 of the Criminal Code — Insulting a government official
Art. 368 of the Criminal Code — Insulting the President of the Republic of Belarus
Art. 367 of the Criminal Code — Slander against the President of the Republic of Belarus
Sentence: 4 1/2 years
Penalty: imprisonment in a general-security penal colony
Prison sentence start date: 11 August 2023
Judge: Mikalai Kmita
Prison: Penal colony No. 17
Ihar Shumilau is an activist from Baranavičy. He is a former biker and an amputee: ten years ago, he got into a road accident and had his leg amputated.
Shumilau was arrested on February 23, 2023. The next day he was convicted under Article 19.11 of the Code of Administrative Offenses for 'dissemination of extremist materials'. Judge Viktoryia Pakunova found him guilty and arrested him for 15 days.
The human rights defenders of Viasna learned that a criminal case had been opened against him under Article 369 of the Criminal Code, and he was placed in remand prison #6 in Brest.
On May 30, 2023, the Baranavičy District and City Court heard his criminal case under Article 369 ('Contempt of a public official'), Part 1 of Article 368 ('Contempt of the President of Belarus'), and Part 2 of Article 367 ('Defamation against the President of Belarus') of the Criminal Code. Judge Mikalai Kmita sentenced Ihar Shumilau to 4 years and 6 months of imprisonment in a general-security penal colony.
In September 2023, it was reported that Ihar was sent to penal colony No. 17.
