A Moscow court has sentenced Aleksandr Kraicuk, a 34-year-old Russian man, to 13 years in a high-security prison for "high treason," after he was found guilty of donating €50 to the Ukrainian army.
Political Ideological Hatred
The ruling, delivered on November 1 and made public Friday, stated that Kraicuk provided "financial support to a foreign state" out of "political and ideological hatred."
According to Digi24 the Russian state news agency RIA Novosti reported that the donation was made just two days after Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022.
According to RIA Novosti, Kraicuk’s transfer went to a German bank account linked to Ukrainian military support. Russian authorities apprehended Kraicuk in 2023 while he was preparing to leave the country for Turkey.
Minor Financial Donations
His arrest followed the seizure of his mobile phone, which authorities said contained evidence of the transaction.
The prominent human rights organization Memorial, banned in Russia and designated a "foreign agent" by the government, has condemned the sentence as excessively harsh.
Kraicuk’s case follows a similar incident earlier this year. In August, Ksenia Karelina, a 32-year-old dual Russian-American citizen living in California, received a 12-year prison sentence for donating $50 to a Ukrainian organization. She had been detained while visiting family in Russia.
Since the start of its military campaign in Ukraine, Russian authorities have increased crackdowns on suspected "espionage," "treason," and "extremism."
Acts as minor as financial donations or criticism of the Russian army can now result in severe prison sentences, reflecting the tightening of internal security measures since the war began.
