Two jailed over post-election protests in Pinsk
The Lieninski District Court of Brest has sentenced political prisoner Illia Bokhan to three and a half years in prison on charges of involvement in ‘riots’ in the aftermath of the rigged presidential election of August 2020.
One more protester, Stsiapan Drozd, was sentenced to 4 years in prison.
This is the third group of defendants convicted of ‘rioting’ on August 9-10, 2020. The courts have imprisoned a total of 26 protesters.
According to the indictment, Illia Bokhan, who was not yet 18 years old in August 2020, took part in the ‘mass riots’ by throwing an empty aluminum can at police officers. However, the specific officer who was allegedly hit by the can, was never named by the prosecution. Moreover, none of the policemen identified Bokhan in court. The young man was also accused of ‘attempting to break a tree’. In the courtroom, an employee of the municipal forestry agency, explained that the tree survived. However, his organization filed a lawsuit demanding 117 rubles in damages.
Stsiapan Drozd was accused of attempting (unsuccessfully) to punch a police shield, which in turn touched the leg of a police officer. A medical examination argued that the officer suffered a wound inflicted ‘2 to 6 days ago’. The prosecution said it ‘did not rule out its formation from Drozd’s blow to the shield and subsequently to the leg.’
