Light and darkness in our state have collided so intensely that it is no longer possible not to see how vile and repulsive the goals and methods of what is called Russian statehood truly are. Here, humanity—an honest, creative desire to live in peace with one’s neighbors—becomes so punishable that it spares neither the weakest nor the most defenseless. And the drive to inflame hatred and, in effect, to push toward the destruction of two peoples—including those who oppose this violence—becomes routine. Yet we believe in the inevitability of accountability for every action and every act of inaction in this gloom—and in deserved retribution. You can learn the details of this emotional comment from the news below:
A wheelchair user from Izhevsk sentenced to 5.5 years in prison over a Telegram comment about Putin and the FSB
The Central District Military Court in Yekaterinburg found 58-year-old Alexander Krichevsky guilty under an article on public calls for terrorism and sentenced him to 5.5 years in a general-regime penal colony, our correspondent reports from the courtroom.
The court also banned him from administering online resources and ordered his phone to be destroyed. The prosecutor had asked for six years in a general-regime colony as well as a three-year ban on administering websites.
Alexander Krichevsky, a systems administrator from Izhevsk, is a Group I disabled person due to bone marrow inflammation and kidney problems. At home, his elderly mother helped him. After his arrest, she died. The accused was brought to court in a wheelchair. After ending up in pre-trial detention, he was unable to renew his disability status and is now formally deprived of it.
The criminal case against Krichevsky was triggered by his comment dated September 11, 2024, in the Telegram channel of Chechen opposition blogger Tumso Abdurakhmanov. According to investigators, the defendant wrote: “That’s why we listen to him—because he isn’t afraid—a ray of freedom in a kingdom of darkness! And we will destroy this darkness only together, when we realize that we have one enemy—Putin and his FSB clique… You and we must destroy this enemy so that we can go on living as peaceful neighbors.”
Krichevsky did not plead guilty. In court he said he had not called for the “physical elimination” of the president and FSB officers. He admitted his words might be “unlawful,” but not falling under the terrorism article.
In his final statement, Krichevsky spoke about three “winter Thursdays” that changed his life. The first Thursday, December 19, 2024, was the day he was detained, and his mother, who needed care, was sent to a nursing home. On another Thursday, January 19, 2025, Krichevsky’s mother died while he was in pre-trial detention, deprived of necessary care. The third Thursday is today—the day of the verdict.
Krichevsky said he regrets certain mistakes he made online that helped law enforcement identify him. He urged listeners not to use the same nicknames on Instagram and Telegram.
The defendant emphasized that he does not support the ideology of terrorism, as it leads to nothing good:
“I believed I was telling the truth—only the truth—as I saw the political situation. Of course, I am not calling for any violent actions. Under no circumstances do I support conversations about terrorism, because I consider it pointless—not just pointless, but extremely dangerous. The killing of innocent people and intimidation do not lead to any result.
A result can come from speech; a result can come from logical arguments; a result can come from wise ideological inspirers. But this [terrorism] will lead to nothing except retaliatory measures that will be even more brutal. Violence will give birth to new violence, and it will go on endlessly. Nothing good will come of it.”
Source: the Sotavision Telegram channel.