Yan Rudzik

Affiliated media: Telegram channel Nexta, Telegram channel Belarus of the Brain, Editor

Incident date: May 3, 2023

Attack type:

• Prosecution for libel, insult, violation of privacy (1)

Who attacked: Authorities

Source: Belarusian Association of Journalists

Location: Belarus, Minsk

Additional information:

The Minsk Regional Court issued a verdict in the case of Stsiapan Putsila, Yan Rudzik, and Raman Pratasevich, editors of the Telegram channels Nexta and Belarus of the Brain. Judge Vyachyaslau Tuleyka sentenced Putsila to 20 years in prison with a fine of 1,000 basic amounts (BYN 37,000). The court found Putsila guilty of following criminal articles: organisation of mass riots, public calls for seizure of power, committing an act of terrorism and other actions aimed at harming the national security of Belarus, libel and public insult of the president, as well as conspiracy to seize power by unconstitutional means. Putsila and Rudzik were convicted in absentia — both are outside Belarus under international protection. According to the prosecution, since 2020, the defendants at different times published information materials with destructive purposes in the Telegram channels Nexta and Belarus of the Brain and urged protesting citizens to commit acts of terrorism.