Maksim Drabnitsa
sentenced to 8 years of imprisonment
Date of birth: 9 May 2001
Charges indicted:
Art. 361-1 of the Criminal Code — Creation of an extremist formation, or participation in it
Sentence: 8 years
Penalty: imprisonment in a medium-security penal colony
Prison sentence start date: 20 September 2023
Judge: Mikalai Dolia
Statement on the status of a political prisoner
Maksim Drabnitsa is 22 years old and lives in Svietlahorsk, Homieĺ region. He was found guilty of joining the Pieramoha plan recognized as an extremist formation and allegedly planning to blow up the railway in the Svietlahorsk district. He was charged under two articles of the Criminal Code: Part 3 of Article 361-1 ('Creation of an extremist formation or participation in it') and Part 2 of Article 290-5 ('Organization of activities of a terrorist organization and participation in such an organization').
The trial of Maksim Drabnitsa began on May 26, 2023, in the Homieĺ Regional Court, and was held behind closed doors by Judge Mikalai Dolia. After the arrest, Drabnitsa was detained in remand prison #3 in Homieĺ.
On June 10, 2023, the Homieĺ Regional Court sentenced Maksim Drabnitsa to eight years of imprisonment in a medium-security penal colony and a fine of 3,700 Belarusian rubles (approx. $1,221).
In April 2023, the KGB added Maksim Drabnitsa to their "list of terrorists".
