Viktar Shmihelski
sentenced to 2 years and 8 months in prison, later sentence increased by 2 months
Date of birth: 4 April 1996
Date of detention: 12 February 2021
Charges indicted:
Art. 342 of the Criminal Code — Organization and preparation of actions that grossly violate public order, or active participation in them
Art. 370 of the Criminal Code — Desecration of state symbols
Art. 364 of the Criminal Code — Violence or threat of violence against an employee of the internal affairs bodies
Sentence: 2 years and 8 months
Penalty: imprisonment in a general-security penal colony
Date of release: 15 July 2023
Judge: Mikalai Serhiayevich
Prosecutor: Andrei Anoshka
Viktar Shmihelski is a protester convicted under Article 342 (active participation in group actions that grossly violate public order) and Article 364 of the Criminal Code (violence against a police officer). The charges stem from his involvement in the election night demonstration held in Žlobin on August 9, 2020.
On March 22, 2021, the Žlobin District Court sentenced Shmihelski to two and a half years in prison.
On October 21, 2021, the Žlobin District Court sentenced Shmihelski to 1 year of restricted freedom on charges of "insluting the state flag" (Art. 370 of the Criminal Code). The new verdict added two months to the initial term of imprisonment.
