A court fined two Black Sea Fleet servicemen who spoke out against the war with Ukraine

A court fined two Black Sea Fleet servicemen who spoke out against the war with Ukraine

In March, a court in annexed Crimea found two Russian servicemen from the Black Sea Fleet guilty of “discrediting” the army (Part 1 of Article 20.3.3 of the Code of Administrative Offenses). Verstka found the relevant rulings in the case database of the Feodosia City Court.

The first to be fined 30,000 rubles was serviceman Vladislav Rudenko. According to the ruling, on December 10 last year he was talking with three fellow servicemen.

“It was Russia that attacked Ukraine, came to Crimea and took it for itself, the ‘Moskals.’ Russia is firing at civilian targets, as a result of which peaceful Ukrainian people are being killed,” he said during the conversation, according to the ruling.

A protocol was later drawn up against Rudenko over these words. He did not appear at the court hearing.

Two and a half weeks later, the court considered another similar case against serviceman Anatoly Melnik, who serves in military unit 09703-L (the Navy’s 31st Test Center).

According to the protocol, while also among fellow servicemen, he stated that he did not approve of “the conduct of the war against Ukraine; as a result of the special military operation and Russian missile strikes, peaceful Ukrainian people are being killed.”

Melnik appeared at the court hearing and stated that “he had not made such statements and does not know why the witnesses are accusing him”. Despite this, the judge found him guilty and imposed a fine of 30,000 rubles.

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