Serhii Buhaichuk, a Ukrainian national who was formally released from a penal colony in Tula on 11 July 2026, is now being held at a Temporary Detention Centre for Foreign Nationals (TsVSIG) and continues to face persecution. Yesterday, he was fined under Article 20.3 of the Russian Code of Administrative Offences, which prohibits the display of extremist symbols. Although the fine for displaying a Ukrainian flag bearing the word ‘Azov’ was only 2,000 roubles (\u2248\u20ac22), Serhii Buhaichuk now faces criminal charges for the repeated display of prohibited symbols under Article 282.4 of the Russian Criminal Code, which carries a sentence of up to four years’ imprisonment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
His treatment may be linked to the fact that Serhii Buhaichuk was detained in 2018 on charges of arms smuggling and illegal arms trafficking, and was subsequently sentenced to eight years’ imprisonment. He did not admit guilt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
As Mediazona previously reported, ‘Ten days before his release, the Ukrainian was placed in a punishment cell, where he had no access to his belongings. When Buhaichuk was taken out and led towards the exit, he was met by unknown men in civilian clothing. One of them, according to the activist, said: “Don’t think you’ll get out that easily.” During a search, a Ukrainian flag was taken from a folder containing his documents, after which the word “Azov” was written on it with a marker pen in front of him. He was then asked to sign a pre-prepared seizure report, but refused. After that, he was beaten for around an hour, and his head was then shaved.’<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":0,"template":"","class_list":["post-63195","news","type-news","status-publish","hentry","regions-tula-oblast","news-type-nashi-novosti-en"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n