First sentence for ‘activities against Russian security’ handed down in occupied Yalta

Date: 27 August 2026
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On 25 August 2026, local resident Heorhii Artamonov was sentenced in occupied Yalta under Article 280.4 of the Russian Criminal Code regarding public calls for activities directed against Russia’s security. This is the first known case of this article being applied in temporarily occupied Crimea, the Tribunal. Crimean Episode initiative reported.

Illustrative image. Photo: ici-c-nancy.fr
The case was heard by the illegitimate “Yalta City Court”, with Kristina Kirillova presiding as “judge”. At the same time, the details of the sentence and the essence of the charges brought against Artamonov remain unknown, although as of 27 August 2026, the case file shows the status “sentence handed down”.

Article 280.4 of the Russian Criminal Code provides for liability for public calls for activities that the Russian authorities consider directed against the state’s security. In Russian judicial practice, this article has been used, in particular, to persecute people over public statements related to the war against Ukraine.

You may also want to read: From “soft power” to torture chambers: patterns of Russia’s seizure of new states based on Ukraine’s experience

Earlier, ZMINA reported that the Southern District Military Court in Rostov-on-Don sentenced a resident of occupied Melitopol in the Zaporizhzhia Oblast to six years in a general-regime penal colony over comments on Telegram.

As a reminder, as of 24 August 2026, 1,774 cases of administrative punishment for the so-called discrediting of the Russian Armed Forces were recorded in occupied Crimea.

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