Belarusian court sentenced for mercenaries on the side of the LC
Regional court in the Belarusian city of Gomel were punished two years of imprisonment 29-the summer Byelorussian Vitaly Kotlaba for participating in an armed formation on the territory of the self-proclaimed “Luhansk people’s Republic” in Eastern Ukraine.
This is the first in Belarus, a verdict of mercenary activities and participation in the Ukrainian conflict, coupled with real deprivation of liberty.
“Humanitarian Cossack”
Under the assumptions of human rights defenders, 29-year-old Gomel resident “calculated” the Belarusian security services; evidence of illegal activity gathered by the Investigating Committee.
It turned out that through the Russian frontier point entered the territory of the self-proclaimed LNR in the summer of 2015 has entered the territory of the LC in armed formation — the Cossack regiment, home in Gomel decided to go back to early 2017.
The prosecution claimed in court that the Belarusian enrolled in a Cossack regiment as a private, had his ID, military weapons, uniforms and almost a year participated in the shooting, military exercises and other military events.
The accused stated that the weapon had, in military operations did not participate, not a soldier.
According to the young man, he as a member of one of the Russian public associations were sent on a humanitarian mission on the territory of Ukraine, which is controlled by the LC. There were collected and distributed humanitarian aid, “information for the Cossacks”, created informational videos, and participated in the creation of a database of soldiers of two other armed units LNR.