Volgograd activist sent to pre-trial detention for fake news about the army

The court in Volgograd has detained elderly activist Stepan Golich, whose posts on social media were deemed "knowingly false information" about the Russian armed forces.

67-year-old Stepan Golich is charged with three episodes of military "fakes" motivated by political hatred (paragraph "d" of part 2 of article 207.3 of the Criminal Code of Russia). This article carries a sentence of five to ten years in prison.

The case against Golich, submitted on October 20 to the Dzerzhinsky District Court of Volgograd, was highlighted by "Mediazona"*. Lawyer Dmitry Nesterенко explained that the reason for Golich's persecution was his publications on the platforms "VKontakte" and "Zen".

"He was broadcasting the opinions of international organizations, and that is essentially why he was detained. He did not exclude the official position of [the Russian] authorities; nevertheless, he, an elderly man, was taken into custody," the publication quotes the defender's words.

Stepan Golich is a native of the Transcarpathian region of Ukraine. In response to reports of Ukrainian casualties, the man expressed condolences on social media. His "VKontakte" page features a permanent status: "Live according to your human conscience! Do not be indifferent to evil."

In 2020, Golich, along with other activists, protested against the cutting down and improper trimming of trees in the city. According to local media, he was involved in landscaping issues in 2021, when he achieved from the district administration the mowing of grass in one of the neighborhoods of Volgograd.

"Caucasian Knot" also reported that a journalist and blogger from the Krasnodar region, Alexander Nozdrinov, was sentenced to 8.5 years in prison under the article on spreading fakes about the army. The journalist's relatives linked the persecution to his civic position and stated about the bias of the court, to which the defense presented evidence of Nozdrinov's innocence. On October 17, it became known about his return to the SHIZO.

On similar charges of spreading fakes, the court sentenced Sochi engineer Alexey Shchus to 5.5 years in a penal colony in January 2025. On October 11, human rights defenders announced a fundraising campaign for him.

* included by the Ministry of Justice of Russia in the register of foreign agents.

** the activities of the Meta company (which owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp) are banned in Russia.