Egor Melnikov is a political prisoner
A resident of Moscow Oblast has been sentenced to seven years in a penal colony for setting fire to a railway relay cabinet, an act committed while he was a minor
The ‘Political Prisoners. Memorial’ human rights project, in accordance with international standards, considers Egor Melnikov a political prisoner. Melnikov was convicted of sabotage for setting fire to a railway relay cabinet in Moscow Oblast. Melnikov’s criminal prosecution and conviction violated his right to a fair trial. We demand Egor Melnikov’s immediate release, that the criminal charge against him of sabotage be dropped, and that his case be reviewed in a fair trial.
What were the charges against Egor Melnikov?
Egor Melnikov and Mikhail Sidorov, both then 17 years old, were detained in January 2024 in Dolgoprudny in Moscow Oblast. They were accused of setting fire to a railway relay cabinet. On 26 January 2024, the teenagers were remanded in custody.
Initially, the two teenagers were charged with ‘attempted destruction of transport infrastructure’ (Article 30, Part 3, of the Criminal Code of the Russian Federation in conjunction with Article 267, Part 1, CC RF). The charge was then reclassified as sabotage (Article 281, Part 2 [a], CC RF). According to the prosecution, an unknown person contacted Sidorov via a messenger service, proposing that Sidorov set fire to a railway relay cabinet in the interests of Ukraine and for a reward. Sidorov then proposed to Melnikov that the latter set fire to the relay cabinet with him. On 21 January the teenagers broke into the relay cabinet and set it on fire. They recorded the event on video. The damage caused amounted to almost 21,000 roubles.
On 18 February 2025, Moscow City Court sentenced Egor Melnikov to seven years in a penal colony.
In October 2025, Mikhail Sidorov was sentenced to eight years in a penal colony.
Why do we consider Egor Melnikov a political prisoner?
We believe the court wrongly classified Egor Melnikov’s actions. The law criminalising sabotage requires that the purpose of the criminal act be ‘to undermine the economic security and defence capability of the Russian Federation.’ Melnikov denies that the arson had such a purpose. His testimony suggests that for him the arson was an extreme form of entertainment in the company of a friend. If there was a more serious motive behind his actions, it was rather a form of protest against Russia’s war on Ukraine than an attack on Russia’s ‘defence capability,’ especially given that the court itself acknowledged that no serious damage was caused.
The key piece of evidence in the trial — correspondence in a messaging app on Melnikov’s phone with the individual who ‘ordered’ the arson — was allegedly irretrievably lost by the investigative authorities under unclear circumstances. The prosecution sought to fill this gap by means of a number of files found on Melnikov’s phone containing the words ‘SVO’ [Special Military Operation], ‘VSU’ [Ukrainian Armed Forces], ‘curator,’ ‘arson,’ ‘war,’ ‘gasoline,’ ‘RZD’ [Russian Railways], ‘USA,’ and ‘dollar.’ We consider such evidence absurd.
We still lack information on Mikhail Sidorov’s criminal case, as it was separated into a separate proceeding. We shall consider the possibility of recognising him as a political prisoner once the details of his case are known.
A detailed description of Egor Melnikov’s case and of our position is available on our website.
How can you help?
You can write to Egor Melnikov at the following address:
RU:
140405, Московская область, г. Коломна, проезд Колычевский, д. 6, ФКУ ИК-6 ГУФСИН России по Московской области, Мельников Егор Владимирович, 2006 г. р.
EN:
Egor Vladimirovich Melnikov (born 2006), Penal Colony No. 6, Federal Penitentiary Service of Russia for Moscow Oblast, 6 Kolychevsky proezd, Kolomna, Moscow Oblast, 140405, Russia.
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