Aleksandr Antonov: GRANDPA IN A GULAG
Arrested March 5, 2025, while returning to the United States after attending to family in Ukraine and business in Russia-occupied Crimea.
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Basis for Wrongful Detention designation
Aleksandr travels to Ukraine and Crimea for frequent vists to care for extended family still residing in Ukraine and business interests in the region. During this trip, he was arrested on March 5 2025, while attempting to cross the border from Russia’s western Pskov region into Estonia, en route to his home in Santa Barbara, CA.
During passport control and outbound inspection, Russian Border Service officers searched his belongings and discovered his U.S. passport. Their attitude immediately became openly aggressive.
Aleksandr was mocked and threatened with violence. The border officers further demanded to inspect his Ukrainian cellphone. Upon reading various Telegram messages on his phone, with alleged phrases in support of the Ukrainian military, they claimed the messages were anti-Russian, and he was initially detained in the transit zone of the border checkpoint.
Aleksandr was then transported to Pechory, Russia, where a fabricated report was generated accusing him of hooliganism near a restaurant (despite his being in jail at the time), and he was brought before a judge and sentenced to ten days of administrative detention. He was then ultimately charged and convicted in another court on charges relating to inciting terrorism and extremism, pursuant to the alleged Telegram messages.
Aleksandr was sentenced to six years of imprisonment in a Russian gulag.
Learn More & Get Involved
Aleksandr’s family is organizing the effort to amplify his story and advocate on his behalf. You can learn more about his story and their efforts here:
