Aleksei Shchus is a political prisoner
An engineer from Sochi has been sentenced to five and a half years in a penal colony on charges of spreading ‘fake news’ about the Russian army and creating ‘projectile weapons’
The ‘Political Prisoners. Memorial’ human rights project, in accordance with international standards, considers Aleksei Shchus a political prisoner. Shchus was convicted on charges of ‘spreading information known to be false about the use of the Russian armed forces’ and the ‘illegal manufacture of projectile weapons.’ Shchus’s prosecution and conviction violated his rights to freedom of expression and fair trial. We demand the release of Aleksei Shchus and that all criminal charges against him be dropped.
What were the charges against Aleksei Shchus?
A criminal charge of spreading ‘fake news’ about the Russian army (Article 207.3, Part 2, of the Russian Criminal Code) was brought against Aleksei Shchus in May 2024 for posts he had made on the VK social media platform. In 2022, Shchus published posts criticising the war against Ukraine. He wrote about the bombing of a maternity hospital in Mariupol, the violence of Russian military personnel against residents of Kherson, and the bodies of those killed who had not been buried before the retreat from Izyum. On 15 August 2024, Shchus was remanded in custody.
Towards the end of the preliminary investigation, Shchus was also charged with the illegal manufacture of projectile weapons (Article 223, Part 4). The basis for the new charge was a ‘hand-held vacuum weapon’ found during a search, which had been created by an engineer in 2019. Shchus had published a description of the weapon on a specially created website.
Why do we consider Alexei Shchus a political prisoner?
The offence of disseminating ‘fake news’ about the actions of the Russian army, of which Aleksei Shchus was convicted, was introduced into the Criminal Code immediately after the start of Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. The law effectively prohibits any criticism of the Russian authorities or military in violation of the right to freedom of expression. This law contradicts both the Constitution and Russia’s international obligations, as well as fundamental principles of law. In particular, the law contradicts the principle of legal certainty since citizens cannot know in advance what information may be considered false. Moreover, it is impossible to establish whether false information was disseminated knowingly or with intent. We consider all charges under this article to be unlawful.
We do not know the exact wording Shchus used in his posts, but the events themselves have been documented in detail in various sources, including reports by international and human rights organisations. The Russian authorities deny the established facts.
It is obvious that Shchus attracted the attention of law enforcement agencies with his anti-war publications, and the ‘projectile weapon’ was found by chance during a search. Given the political nature of Shchus’s prosecution, most likely the charge of manufacturing weapons was added to make the investigative authorities’ position more convincing and is not justified. In any case, Shchus was given a non-custodial sentence of compulsory work for this charge. Considering the time he spent in custody, he has already served this sentence.
A detailed description of Aleksei Shchus’s case and of our position is available on our website.
Recognition of an individual as a political prisoner does not imply the ‘Political Prisoners. Memorial’ human rights project agrees with, or approves, their views, statements, or actions.
How can you help?
You can write to Aleksei Shchus at the following address:
RU: 352680, Краснодарский край, Апшеронский р-н, г. Хадыженск, ул. Грибоедова, д. 42, ФКУ ИК-9 ГУФСИН России по Краснодарскому краю, ПФРСИ, Щусю Алексею Васильевичу 1978 г. р.
EN: Aleksei Vasilyevich Shchus (born 1978), Penal Colony No. 9, Federal Penitentiary Service of Russia for Krasnodar Krai, 42 Griboedova Street, Khadyzhensk, Apsheronsky district, Krasnodar Krai, 352680, Russia
You can also send an email using ZT (for payment with all bank cards), Vestochka and Memorial-France (free of charge).
Please note that letters in languages other than Russian are highly unlikely to reach the intended recipient.You can donate to help all political prisoners in Russia.
