Human rights activists have recognized a Temryuk resident convicted of treason as a political prisoner.

Temryuk native Ruslan Orlovsky, sentenced to six years on charges of attempting to join a Ukrainian unit, was subjected to "carousel arrests," which human rights activists consider a sign of falsification.

As reported by "Caucasian Knot," in 2024, a military court in Rostov-on-Don found a Temryuk resident guilty of preparing to participate in a terrorist organization and treason. The man, whom security forces detained "while attempting to leave for Ukrainian territory," was sentenced to six years in a maximum-security prison.

The human rights project "Support for Political Prisoners. Memorial"* has recognized 35-year-old Temryuk resident Ruslan Orlovsky, convicted of attempting to travel to Ukraine to participate in military operations against Russian troops, as a political prisoner.

Ruslan Orlovsky was detained no later than November 2023. The prosecution claims he was detained while attempting to leave Russia. Human rights activists point out that there is no independent confirmation of the FSB's version of events, but there is evidence of falsification of the case materials: after his detention, Orlovsky was subjected to "carousel" arrests under administrative charges. This method of holding a person in custody for an extended period before criminal charges are brought gives security forces time to fabricate a case; during these "carousel arrests," suspects are subjected to pressure.

Human rights activists recalled that Orlovsky was sentenced to six years in a maximum-security prison in the spring of 2024. According to the verdict, he contacted representatives of the Ukrainian special services and intended to join a certain "paramilitary organization" designated as a terrorist organization in the Russian Federation.

According to the human rights activists, Orlovsky should not be prosecuted, even if the prosecution's allegations about his intentions are credible, since the actions described by the prosecution do not fall under the definition of treason recognized by international law.

They also pointed out that the nature of Orlovsky's case is not unique – Russian citizens from various regions have been convicted on similar charges. "The similarity in the cases of Russians from different parts of the country suggests that FSB officers may have been communicating with them online, posing as representatives (of Ukrainian units), and that the criminal prosecution was the result of an operational provocation," the project stated in a January 14 statement.

Ruslan Orlovsky was born in the city of Temryuk in the Kuban region in May 1990. His information was added to the Rosfinmonitoring register of terrorists and extremists even before his sentencing, in February 2024, according to messages from a Telegram bot tracking updates to the list. Orlovsky's information was initially added to the list with an erroneous year of birth (1980); a week later, this was corrected.

* are listed as foreign agents.

** Meta (owner of Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp) is banned in Russia.