At least 7 years behind bars: Russia sentences teenagers from temporarily occupied Melitopol for "terrorism"
Three teenage boys from temporarily occupied Melitopol who were accused of "terrorism" have been given prison sentences by the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don, Russia. These young people were tried as Russian citizens.
Source: Bring Kids Back UA
Details: The boys were given lengthy prison terms, as follows:
- Viktor Azarovskyi – 8 years and 6 months
- Oleh Shokol – 7 years and 6 months
- Denys Vasylyk – 7 years.
"Despite the illegal transfer of the teenagers from occupied territory and the questionable nature of the evidence, Russia brought serious criminal charges against them. The trial was held behind closed doors, with no access for independent observers or international organisations," Bring Kids Back UA said in a statement.
Earlier, Viktor Azarovskyi's lawyer Kateryna Bobrovska said in an interview with Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty that the boy had been detained by masked men in balaclavas who forced him into a car. According to journalists, this happened on 31 October 2023.
Oleh Shokol and Denys Vasylyk were detained a day or two earlier. At the time of their arrest, the boys were only 16 to 17 years old.
The teenagers were held unlawfully for more than two years in poor conditions and subjected to beatings, torture and psychological pressure.
They were moved between detention facilities, including Pre-trial Detention Centre No. 2 in Mariupol and Pre-trial Detention Centre No. 2 in Taganrog, Russia, which is notorious for its brutal treatment of Ukrainian civilians and prisoners of war.
Viktoriia Roshchyna, a freelance contributor to Ukrainska Pravda, was also held captive there. In 2024, it emerged that she had died in a Russian prison.
Bobrovska also said that the teenager developed serious health problems in Taganrog: he was unable to sleep or eat, and the skin on his arms was covered in lesions.
"Viktor turned 18 there. The cell is designed for eight people, but sixteen inmates are being held in it. The children are subjected to horrific torture. Viktor Azarovskyi suffered a serious traumatic brain injury while still at school; he was under psychiatric supervision and was taking medication that simply cannot be discontinued. No one paid any attention to this," the lawyer said.
According to Bobrovska, the teenager developed severe skin problems, which meant he could barely sleep and could not eat. She said repeated appeals to doctors yielded no results, as they replied that they would do nothing.
Kateryna received a call from a person held nearby, who said Viktor was simply lying there, staring at the ceiling and not eating.
"This is not justice. This is the persecution of children and a war crime. Russia is systematically using unlawful detention, torture and sham trials as tools to exert pressure on Ukrainian children, violating the norms of international humanitarian law.
That is why the return of every Ukrainian child remains an unconditional priority for Ukraine," Bring Kids Back UA said.
Background: Earlier, in the temporarily occupied part of Zaporizhzhia Oblast, the Russians sentenced a 68-year-old woman to 11 years in prison for making a donation to the Armed Forces of Ukraine.
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