Arestovich was sentenced in absentia to 11 years in prison in Russia
A Moscow military court sentenced Oleksiy Arestovych, a former adviser to the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, in absentia to 11 years in prison. The Russian court found him guilty of spreading so-called “fake news” about the Russian army and inciting terrorism.
“The 2nd Western District Military Court in Moscow sentenced Oleksiy Arestovych, a former adviser to the head of the Office of the President of Ukraine, to 11 years in prison in absentia,” the statement reads.
The trial took place in absentia and behind closed doors. The case was heard in a single day.
Russian law enforcement authorities charged Arestovych based on his public statements made after the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine.
In particular, the basis for the criminal prosecution was a video from March 17, 2022, in which Arestovych called for:
“To wage a total rail war”
This referred to actions against Russia in the temporarily occupied territories.
Another incident involved a post from April 8, 2022, regarding the Russian strike on the train station in Kramatorsk.
Thus, the Russian court used Arestovich’s public statements and materials he had released after the start of the full-scale war against him.
The verdict was handed down in absentia, as Arestovych is not under the control of Russian law enforcement agencies.
This was reported by Russian media.
Earlier, a Moscow court ordered the arrest in absentia of Michael Martens, a journalist for the German newspaper Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. Russian authorities accuse him of allegedly “inciting hatred or hostility.”
