Russian anti-war teenager faces five years in jail after failed appeal

One of Russia's youngest governmental prisoners has mislaid an entreaty to overturn a five-year jailhouse sentence.

Arseny Turbin was lone 15 erstwhile helium was arrested successful the summertime of 2023.

Authorities accused him of joining the Freedom of Russia Legion - a paramilitary portion composed of Russian volunteers warring for Ukraine against the Russian army.

The Freedom of Russia Legion is designated arsenic violent organisation by Russia, and Arseny was sentenced to 5 years successful a juvenile colony. On Thursday, the tribunal of entreaty reduced his five-year word - but lone by 24 days.

Arseny is 1 of 9 minors who person faced politically motivated transgression charges since the commencement of the Russian penetration of Ukraine and the consequent crackdown connected civilian liberties, according to Russian quality rights organisation OVD-Info.

He denies each the charges against him. He says helium researched the legion but that helium ne'er applied and has committed nary crime. His parent Irina besides maintains helium is innocent.

“I conscionable don’t recognize the justice who handed down the sentence,” she told the BBC.

Investigators person besides claimed Arseny distributed leaflets captious of Russian President Vladimir Putin connected the legion’s behalf.

He admitted to distributing leaflets but denied pursuing instructions from anybody.

Arseny did openly criticise Russia's penetration of Ukraine and Vladimir Putin successful school.

He was besides politically progressive connected societal media, reposting contented from Russian absorption figures and occasionally sharing his ain governmental content, including a video successful which helium tin beryllium seen holding a solo picket successful enactment of precocious absorption person Alexei Navalny.

His parent says helium was acting of his ain accord and not connected the instructions of the Freedom of Russia Legion.

Yet, successful precocious August 2023, agents from the FSB, Russia’s information service, searched Arseny’s location successful the tiny municipality of Livny, 450km (280 miles) southbound of Moscow, and confiscated his physics devices.

The adjacent time helium was summoned for questioning and accused of joining the Freedom of Russia Legion.

“I was hysterical, I was shaking, crying," says his mother. "Arseny told me: 'Mum, calm down, I didn’t perpetrate immoderate crime, they volition enactment it out.'"

No lawyer was contiguous during the interrogation, which Irina profoundly regrets. She believes the FSB subsequently added to the transcript a confession of guilt that Arseny ne'er made.

Some of his schoolmates were questioned by investigators and said Arseny would often criticise Putin and Russia's actions successful Ukraine. But successful their statements - which the BBC has seen - nary of them said helium had a transportation to the Freedom of Russia Legion.

Nevertheless, Arseny was formally arrested the pursuing week.

He spent respective months nether location apprehension arsenic helium awaited sentencing. Then, past June, helium was transferred to a Moscow detention centre, wherever helium has been detained ever since.

In that time, his parent says his value has dropped from 69kg to 52kg arsenic helium struggled with deficiency of appetite owed to changeless stress.

Irina besides noticed helium has withdrawn emotionally, and that helium often asks wherefore helium is punished for thing helium did not do.

For a clip Arseny besides had a convulsive cellmate who attacked him, deed him connected the caput and threatened him.

Speaking to the BBC, Irina and Arseny’s teachers painted a representation of a highly intelligent and politically engaged young antheral who present faces respective agelong years successful jailhouse for a transgression helium did not commit.

His parent said from a young property Arseny had been passionate astir science, peculiarly physics and economics.

He had dreamed of studying governmental subject astatine a prestigious Moscow university. “He wanted to amended beingness successful Russia,” his parent said.

She spoke of her lad having a beardown consciousness of justice, which helium developed aft experiencing bullying astatine school.

He was often mocked and called derogatory names due to the fact that helium was calved successful Dubai and his begetter was from the United Arab Emirates.

Irina says that since his apprehension Arseny nary longer has immoderate friends, arsenic astir person distanced themselves from him.

Her neighbours and co-workers adjacent impeach her of having “raised a terrorist”, she says.

If Arseny truly was innocent, they argue, the tribunal would person acquitted him. She believes they don’t afloat recognize however the Russian judicial strategy works.

Her modular effect is to anticipation they ne'er person to brushwood the strategy themselves.

"But if you do, you’ll find out.”