Сrimean court fined blogger for disrespect for Putin

Russia-controlled Yalta City Court has fined a local blogger and journalist, Yevgeny Gayvoronsky 30,000 rubles (around $468) for his post in Facebook that had an would-be "negative evaluation"  of Russian President Vladimir Putin, as the lawyer Alexei Ladin told “Krym.Realii” (FRE/RL).

He specified that the judge had ruled that Gayvoronsky was found guilty of committing an administrative offense under Part 3 of Article 20.1 of the Code of Administrative Offenses of Russia (frank disrespect for bodies exercising state power in Russia).

Ladin said that "this decision would definitely be appealed".

According to Ladin, at the hearing, neither Guyvoronsky, nor his lawyer confirmed that the account with that post belonged to the blogger.

In addition, an expert was interrogated by the judges and he confirmed that "someone Ivanov could create an account "Yevhen Gayvoronsky" with his picture and write there anything he liked".

Evgeny Gaivoronskyi's Facebook account has not been verified.

As IMI reported, on October 22, the justice’s court in Yalta arrested the Yalta activist, blogger and journalist Yevheniy Gayvoronskyy for 15 days.

Gayvoronsky was accused of evading drug treatment under Article 6.9.1. of the Russian Code of Administrative Offenses ("Failure to undergo diagnostics, preventive measures, treatment for drug addiction and (or) medical and / or social rehabilitation in connection with drug use").

On March 26, 2019, the Russian justice’s court in Yalta arrested journalist Yevhen Gayvoronsky for 12 days for committing an administrative offense (Article 6.9 (1) of the Administrative Code (use of narcotic drugs without prescription)). The court also ordered Gayvoronsky to undergo drug treatment.

Gayvoronsky called the charges of drug abuse as non-sense.

On April 7, Yevhen Gayvoronsky was released from a detention facility in Simferopol.

On March 6, in Yalta, Russian security officers searched place of residence of the journalist and blogger with the Sevastopol-based newspaper "Primetchania", Yevheniy Gayvoronsky.

On March 23, the Sevastopol news site "Primechania" claimed that they stopped working with Yalta journalist Yevheniy Gayvoronsky after his "pro-Ukrainian statements" and comments that "did not reflect the editorial position."