Yury Hantsarevich
journalist, sentenced to 2 1/2 years of imprisonment
Former prisoner
Date of birth: 12 April 1999
Date of detention: 27 April 2022
Charges indicted:
- Art. 361-4 of the Criminal Code — Promoting extremist activities
Sentence: 2 1/2 years
Penalty: imprisonment in a general-security penal colony
Date of release: 26 August 2024
Judge: Mikalai Hryharovich
Groups: Journalists
Notes: War in Ukraine
Statement on the status of a political prisoner
Godparent: Felix Döring, Member of the German Bundestag
On April 27, Intex-press journalist Yury Hantsarevich was arrested in an administrative case. On April 29, he was sentenced to 10 days of administrative imprisonment.
About a week after the journalist's detention, pro-government Telegram channels published a video fragment of his interrogation, as well as the reason for his detention: he was allegedly taking pictures of Russian military equipment and sending them to media, recognized by the Belarusian authorities as extremist.
On May 6, Hantsarevich was charged under Part 1 of Article 361-4 of the Criminal Code of Belarus (Promoting extremist activities), which provides for restriction of freedom for up to four years or imprisonment from two to six years.
After the charges were filed, Yury Hantsarevich was transferred from the temporary detention center to the pre-trial detention center No. 6 in Baranavičy.
On July 14, 2022, the Brest Regional Court found Yury Hantsarevich guilty of committing a crime under Part 1 of Article 361-4 (promotion of extremist activity) of the Criminal Code of the Republic of Belarus and sentenced him to 2 years and 6 months of imprisonment in a general-security penal colony.
Journalist convicted for taking pics of military aircraft
