“Misinformation” or revenge?
Russian blogger sentenced to eight years in prison
September 30, 2023, 7:25 a.m
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He is said to have posted a photo of destroyed buildings with the caption “Ukrainian cities after the arrival of the liberators.” For this, the Russian blogger Alexander Nosdrinov now has to go to a penal colony. Meanwhile, his wife speaks of an act of revenge by the local police.
A Russian blogger has been sentenced to more than eight years in prison for spreading “false information” about Moscow’s offensive in Ukraine, according to a court. Alexander Nozdrinov was “sentenced to eight years and six months in prison in a general penal colony,” said the court in the Russian city of Krasnodar. The 38-year-old was also banned from working in the media for four years.
Nozdrinov ran a small YouTube channel on which he posted videos of highway police officers from his home region of Krasnodar apparently violating the law. In March 2022, he was arrested after investigators accused him of posting a photo of destroyed buildings on online services with the caption “Ukrainian cities after the arrival of the liberators.”
In an interview with the independent Russian online media Sota, Nozdrinov’s wife strongly denied the publication of the photo. According to her, her husband’s arrest was initiated by the local police – as an act of revenge for his published videos that showed the officers’ alleged misconduct. The court, however, stated that Nozdrinov had sent the photo. Accordingly, it was found by officials of the domestic intelligence service of the Krasnodar Territory.
Since the beginning of the Russian war in Ukraine, the Russian authorities have increasingly taken action against critical voices. Most Russian government critics are now behind bars or have been sentenced to heavy fines.